USTRANSCOM-assisted Americans stranded abroad return stateside

U.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl Miller is photographed sharing a moment with a father and his sleeping child during repatriation efforts at the airport in Dhaka, Bangladesh. On April 21, 2020, an Omni Air International charter aircraft, contracted by U.S. Transportation Command’s Repatriation Coordination Cell in support of the Department of State, departed Dhaka with approximately 375 Americans onboard. They arrived at Dulles International Airport, Dulles, Virginia, the next day. This and other DOS-supported repatriation flights challenged U.S. commercial air carriers to fly to the other side of the world, among COVID-19 restrictions, to locations not normally flown to, and still successfully accomplish the mission. This particular trip from Bangladesh had some challenges, including aircraft maintenance issues, an extremely long flight, and baggage handlers walking off the job. The U.S. Embassy Dhaka, Bangladesh, and aircrew, however, overcame the obstacles to bring those passengers back to America. From the end of March to mid-May 2020, USTRANSCOM’s Repat Coord Cell, in cooperation with DOS, organized 14 separate contract-air missions, transporting 3,915 U.S citizens stateside due to intensified COVID-19 travel limitations abroad. Photo courtesy of U.S. Embassy Dhaka, Bangladesh