USAF Maj. Karen Davis - DTS badge

[Bluehawk]

There she was, the lone Air(person) lady Airman - working on her SERE with a bunch o' grunts... earning her DTS badge.

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Out of her element?
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8/21/2008 - Airman September/October --

"It was 2 a.m. in the middle of the Djibouti desert. With no moon out, it was hard to see. Soon, the still-hot night, uneven ground and sharp lava rocks took their toll on the combat patrol.

French and American Soldiers and Marines -- and lone Airman Maj. Karen Davis -- made up the patrol. The all-night, 10-mile "hump" was the last event in a nine-day French army desert survival course. Held in one of Earth's harshest environments, it tests the most seasoned troops.

The combat camera officer didn't know what to expect when she volunteered for the course. But she soon thought the mostly infantry operations training was "so out of my element."

"I thought the course would augment my SERE (survival, evasion, resistance and escape) training -- which personally challenged me and made me a better Airman," said the 4th Combat Camera Squadron reservist from March Air Reserve Base, Calif.

As the patrol continued, she told herself she wasn't going to quit. But by dawn, when backs started to ache, legs grew weak and feet blistered, doubts formed.

"It was intimidating," she said. "I was really worried I wouldn't make it."

But she wanted a challenge when she volunteered for the course, despite having foot problems. So, from the first day she picked tasks that made the most sense to learn, like how to pack her gear, be part of a security patrol and pace herself. She didn't want to burden her squad, which soon nicknamed her "Little Foot" because of her stature and foot problems. As the days passed, she relied on the Soldiers and Marines -- some who expected her to drop out.

"But someone was always there to help me," she said. "At times, they were literally showing me how to properly tie my boots or how just to put one foot in front of the other."

The major also felt the pressure to positively represent the Air Force. In her gut, she knew shutting down mentally or physically was not an option. But with every step of the final patrol, she feared the worse. The course had taken its toll on her and her feet and she struggled.

So she repeated the mantra that had gotten her that far: "If these guys can do it, so can I."

And she did it. Major Davis finished the patrol, graduating from the course and earning her desert survival, "DTS," badge. Seven of the 40 members who started the course didn't finish."