THE TENSION: Combat Camera: When the Sun Goes Down, Balad Heats Up

An F-16 Fighting Falcon with the 55th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron takes off on a combat mission just after sunset Dec. 18 from Joint Base Balad, Iraq. The 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad is the most forward-deployed Air Force wing participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and its heritage is tied to the famous 332nd Fighter Group "Tuskegee Airmen" of World War II. The jet is deployed from the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Erik Gudmundson.)

The setting sun silhouettes the air traffic control tower at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, Dec. 18. The 332nd Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron controls aircraft from this tower. The 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad is the most forward-deployed Air Force wing participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and its heritage is tied to the famous 332nd Fighter Group "Tuskegee Airmen" of World War II. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Erik Gudmundson.)

A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter flies over Joint Base Balad, Iraq, Dec. 18. The 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad is the most forward-deployed Air Force wing participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and its heritage is tied to the famous 332nd Fighter Group "Tuskegee Airmen" of World War II. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Erik Gudmundson.)