Photo By Senior Master Sgt. Daniel Heaton | Air crew and Air Terminal Function Airmen work together to unload a MJ-1B munitions...... read more read more
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A group of Citizen-Airmen from central Ohio are playing a critical role in keeping U.S. Air Force operations running smoothly in the Middle East.
About 30 Airmen from the 87th Aerial Port Squadron, an Air Force Reserve unit based at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, are currently deployed to Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates. The 87th Airmen are serving as the Air Terminal Function (ATF) at Al Dhafra, handling all aircraft cargo upload and offload and supporting aircraft passenger movement to and from the base, a key hub in the U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility.
The Ohio Reservists traveled as a group to Al Dhafra and make up the entire ATF team.
“There’s been some real benefit to coming together to this deployment as a team,” said Master Sgt. Justin Hunt, flight chief for the ATF. “The forming and norming stages of putting a team together, we pretty much had that covered from working together back at home station. We were able to set expectations before we even got here about how we intended to operate.”
The ATF operates a 24-hour, 7-day schedule, ready to load and unload cargo around the clock.
“There’s times where it is a little busier with air traffic and times where we have a little more downtime. I think our team works pretty well together to understand what needs to be done to support the mission,” Hunt said.
Being thousands of miles away from the U.S. means that aircraft can arrive at Al Dhafra at any time of the day or night, depending on where the aircraft originated. On a recent morning, the team was expecting a C-17 Globemaster III, carrying both cargo and personnel from an Air Force Base in Virginia. At a huddle in the ATF’s operations building about an hour before the C-17 arrived, the team ran through assignments, with inputs welcome from around the team. Ultimately, the Ohio Airmen rolled out with two forklifts, three K-loader vehicles, a bus to accommodate the passengers onboard the incoming flight, and another pick-up truck with several additional personnel to support the unload. After the meeting, the team quickly moved to the next set of tasks: ensuring all the vehicles had the right set of chains to tie down cargo, inspecting the towing pintles on the vehicles and ensuring everything was ready for the unload.
“This is exactly what you want an ATF to look like,” said Major Kelly Myers, director of operations for the 380th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron, of which the ATF is a component.
During the C-17 unload on Feb. 12, Myers watched as the Aerial Porters went about their business on the flight line. Working with the C-17’s loadmasters, the Airmen moved the K-loaders in to position and the unload began. In just about an hour, 34 passengers and 38 tons of cargo had been whisked away. All done mostly with hand signals as various vehicle engines roared and while other personnel were refueling the aircraft for its next departure.
“Safe, efficient operations – that’s what this ATF team is known for,” Myers said.
Over the past several weeks, Airmen at Al Dhafra have had to adapt to different conditions, following several missile attacks that took place near the base. Hunt said that his team has handled the new challenge well.
“We talked about what to do in those scenarios before we left Ohio. How to lean on each other and how to use the resources you have available. We’re really proud of the way the team has performed,” Hunt said.
The 380th AEW is made up of approximately 2,000 Air Power Professionals drawn from across the Air Force, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve who support a diverse mission set, supporting the security and stability of the U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility.
| Date Taken: | 02.12.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 02.28.2022 07:37 |
| Story ID: | 414582 |
| Location: | AE |
| Hometown: | DAYTON, OHIO, US |
| Web Views: | 47 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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