Photo By Senior Airman Karalyn Degraffenreed | A jumpmaster from Thailand’s military waits inside a C-17 Globemaster III as it...... read more read more
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Anxiety, excitement, fear and adrenaline are written all over the faces of the U.S. Army soldiers waiting to jump out of a C-17 Globemaster III hailing from Altus Air Air Force Base, Oklahoma. When their parachutes open and they hit the ground at the Sicily Drop Zone near Fayetteville, North Carolina, all their anticipation will have paid off the moment a child opens the gift that soldier donated for the annual Operation Toy Drop.
From Dec. 7-9, 2022, soldiers from across the world came together to donate toys for Operation Toy Drop at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Service members from Thailand, Poland and Brazil boarded the C-17, piloted by U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. J.D. Shaw, Maj. Jonathan Crawley and Maj. Emily Barkemeyer, 58th Airlift Squadron instructor pilots.
“Our mission spanned over two days,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Jayne Alexander, 730th Air Mobility Training Squadron loadmaster instructor. “Each lift consisted of up to 100 people and about 90 jumpers each time. In order to jump, they had to donate a toy. It’s a really great opportunity for kids around Christmas time.”
The donation of toys was not the only reason for the drop, however. The toy drop is also meant to cultivate an environment of excellence among the aircrews and the airborne soldiers, as well as enhance lethality, readiness and joint interoperability.
“The purpose of the drop is ultimately for airborne operations training to keep everyone current, qualified and at the top peak of our performance,” said U.S. Army Master Sgt. Zeb Doughtery, maintenance supervisor with the U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command.
“Another purpose for the drop is working with our partner nations,” said Doughtery. “We bring them here, and not only does it build a strong relationship with them, we also incorporate it into the training.”
Foreign military members also served as jumpmasters, coordinating with the 58th AS aircrew to help jumpers safely exit the plane. A few of the U.S. soldiers who worked alongside their foreign partners even wore that country’s flag on their shoulder to capitalize on the teamwork between our nations.
“It’s a big event for our international partners,” said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Robert Mayton, 58th AS loadmaster instructor. “There are about ten countries all together that are jumping, so we’re getting training with units we haven’t seen before.”
The 2022 Operation Toy Drop served as an opportunity to exercise joint partnership with other nations while giving back to Airmen and the community during the holiday season.
| Date Taken: | 12.14.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 12.14.2022 15:48 |
| Story ID: | 435192 |
| Location: | ALTUS, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 91 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Jumping for joy: 58 AS supports Operation Toy Drop, by SrA Karalyn Degraffenreed, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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