KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Working in a war zone is seldom considered a career highlight or opportunity -- except perhaps for diplomats and humanitarian workers, and members of the Canadian Forces.
For many soldiers, wrapping up their tour in Afghanistan and going back to their regular jobs will be a welcome relief but also a bit of a letdown.
But if you are a career soldier, going to war is something that you want to do at least once.
"Definitely the highlight of my career -- there's no doubt about that, not at all," Maj. Darryl Adams, a Chinook pilot originally from Antigonish, N.S., said with a laugh.
The risks are worth it even if it comes with a bit of danger.
"That was my first time being shot at and I wondered how I would react and I didn't even think about it until it was all over. I'm not going out there looking for that much excitement," said Adams, who said he will be looking for a job on the ground within the next year.
His co-pilot, Capt. Nick Noel de Tilley, 35, from Gentilly, Que., joined the forces 10 years ago after working as a civilian pilot. He will be leaving the military and Canada once his stint is up in November. Noel de Tilley, his German wife Bettina and three children will be living in Germany.
"It's going to be hard to be away and not care what's happening here so I'm going to make sure I keep listening to the news and make sure nothing's happening to the great guys I've met here," he said.
But he feels good about ending his military flying career in Afghanistan.
"It's pretty much at the top of what we can do in tactical helicopter flying. Flying in Afghanistan is exactly what we've been trained for in the past five or six years so we got to see the real deal," Noel de Tilly said.
"After that, everything should be relatively simple after being here. It's the most challenging flying conditions I have ever seen."
But others stay in the military.
It's certainly not because of the glamour or the pay --often they could work in the private sector and make a lot more money. But many veterans have had the opportunity to be in numerous locales over the years.
Col. Danielle Savard, the commander of the Role 3 Hospital at Kandahar Airfield, has also been in Bosnia and Eritrea during her 24-year career.
"It's nice to go back home," said Savard. "Myself I stayed in the forces."
"Every time I was wondering whether I wanted to stay or go they gave me a mission so I stayed. And if the missions don't come, then maybe it will be time to do something else."
As of February, Master Cpl. Dale Warren will have been in the military for 30 years. After a tour in the Persian Gulf in 1990 as part of Operation Desert Storm, and a peacekeeping mission in Bosnia in 2004, he intends to continue with his military career.
"As long as I'm healthy and still enjoying it, I will stick with it," said Warren, a flight engineer who has worked on 13 different aircraft over the years, including F-18s, Auroras and the Labrador.
"It's definitely not the money that keeps me here because we're not really that well paid. I think I just take pride in my work and for 30 years I haven't crashed yet and that's a good sign."
