Four Oxfordshire RAF reservists, including a lorry driver and a call centre worker, are off to Afghanistan for a six-month tour of duty to help in the fight against the Taliban.
The four men - all from the Royal Auxiliary Air Force at RAF Benson - have been mobilised from 606 Helicopter Support Squadron to support British troops in the troubled country.
Their main roles will be airfield protection in Kandahar and they are not sure what they will be facing as the security situation in the country worsens.
Regular British troops there are frequently in firefights and their transport helicopters have come under attack.
The Benson volunteers move out on Saturday to RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland for three months of training before starting their stint. The whole deployment will last nearly a year.
The oldest man on the team is 51-year-old Martyn Taylor, who lives in Didcot and works for Wincanton Logistics as a driver.
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He said: "We've all heard the news from Afghanistan and we're all a little apprehensive.
"But we have superb training and I'm sure that, and our comradeship, will see us all right."
Mr Taylor, who is married to Vivienne, has two grown-up daughters, one living in Australia.
He said: "I saw an advert in a newspaper and joined up. I was attracted by the challenge."
He has been with the reservists for three years and this posting will be his first on a war footing.
Maltese Ivan Calleja, 38, from Didcot, who works at the Asda distribution centre, will also be on his first active tour of duty.
He said: "I always wanted to do some military service, so I joined the reservists.
"I get the best of both worlds - I get the training and do tours of duty and I also have a civvy job.
"Yes, I'm a bit apprehensive, but this is what we have been trained for and we'll do our best."
Stewart Baker, 30, from Banbury, works for the Vodafone call centre. A single man, he was born and bred in the town.
He said: "It's all about the challenge, pushing oneself to the limit.
"We get the best of training and I'm looking forward to putting it into action."
Tom Gordon, 32, from Stokenchurch, grew up in Abingdon where his parents still live.
He has a history and law degree from Oxford Brookes University and has been with the reservists more than four years, serving in Iraq in 2003.
Mr Gordon, whose wife, Philippa, is a community nurse in Oxford, said he was looking forward to the Afghanistan deployment.
He added: "The training is all very well, but we need to put it to good use and I believe we'll do that when we're out there. There's a job to be done and we'll all give our best."
All have the rank of Senior Aircraftman, all are gunners, and their jobs are being kept open for them to return to after the deployment.
Their main duties will be to protect the airfield at Kandahar and they will be out on patrols as well.
Looking after the men is Squadron leader Charlie Anderson. He said: "They are remarkable people, ready and willing to serve their country and help the regular troops. We are very proud of them."
Over the last four years, 13,500 reservists from all the armed services have been called on to do tours of duty in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Falkland Islands and the Balkans.
British and American troops have been in Afghanistan following air strikes against the Taliban-led country in October 2001 after they refused to hand over Osama bin Laden, in the wake of the September 11 attacks.
The Taliban was defeated two months later, but five years on they have been making a comeback in areas where government control is weak.
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