вЂњHelicopters save lives, they pick up the injured,вЂќ he said. It had been with him for nine years, after all. But thereвЂ™s one mask that isnвЂ™t going anywhere, and thatвЂ™s his own.ДЄfter Pacifici left the Army, he kept his painted face mask with him, bought his Army-issued one, and even shelled out $980 to buy his helmet, too. Pacifici recalled seeing far fewer face masks in the crew chief ranks when he left the Army compared to when he got in.

James Bolek, a crew chief from B Company, 1/150th Assault Helicopter Battalion, watches out the window of a UH-60 Black Hawk while transporting Soldiers and Marines to Dangriga, Belize, April 27, 2017. вЂњTheyвЂ™re cracking down on that nowadays.вЂќ

вЂњNow theyвЂ™re getting crazy with knowing all the regs and following them to a T,вЂќ he said. But in the couple years before he left the Army in 2017, Pacifici noticed the branch was becoming much more strict about the rules regarding maintainer gear. To be fair, Pacifici said many of his superiors in the Army didnвЂ™t mind the face masks as long as he and his colleagues kept the Black Hawks flying. вЂњThey think itвЂ™s cool seeing crew chiefs with different masks.вЂќ вЂњWhen we go to different countries, we donвЂ™t look like robots anymore,вЂќ he said. Pacifici remembered getting the same reaction out of Indonesian soldiers during missions there too. In Afghanistan, the crew chief recalled doing hearts-and-minds missions in small villages where the local kids would вЂњlook at the guys with the face masks and be like вЂwhoaaвЂ™,вЂќ he said.

Army of two mask designs