DOD: U.S. forces, to include mobility Airmen, demonstrate global reach, effectiveness

Published April 5, 2011
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. military demonstrated its global reach and effectiveness in the past month of crises, Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell said April 5.

The U.S. military is probably the only organization in the world that could have handled the demands of providing assistance to the people of Japan in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami while also preventing a massacre in Benghazi, Libya.

The earthquake struck off Japan's northern coast on March 11. The tsunami followed soon after. "From the moment the earthquake struck ... American military forces were ready to respond with whatever assistance was needed by Japan, our close friend and stalwart ally," Mr. Morrell told reporters at the Pentagon.

So far, more than 20,000 U.S. military personnel, about 140 aircraft and more than 20 U.S. ships have provided humanitarian assistance, and supported disaster relief and consequence management efforts in Japan.

A week later, U.S. service members joined an international coalition to prevent a humanitarian crisis in Libya that could have destabilized nascent democratic movements in neighboring Egypt and Tunisia. Operation Odyssey Dawn began with an American-led strike on Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi's military, designed to prevent him from killing large numbers of Libyan civilians in Benghazi and sparking a refugee crisis.

"All told, since operations began on March the 19th, the U.S. has flown approximately 1,600 sorties, which includes more than 600 strike missions," Mr. Morrell said of U.S. military efforts in Libya. "The U.S. strike mission ended yesterday evening ..., but we will continue flying support missions under NATO leadership, and we will remain on alert for emergency strike missions, if requested by NATO."

Meanwhile, about 100,000 American troops are fighting a war against extremism in Afghanistan. Another 46,000 are deployed to Iraq, training Iraqi security forces.

"That we have been able to respond to these crises without missing a beat in either of those efforts is a testament to the strength and versatility of our forces and, most of all, to the men and women in uniform who are prepared to take on any mission assigned to them," Mr. Morrell said.

Air Force contributions by a 'total force'
In a April 2 news report from the Tanker Airlift Control Center Public Affairs, the effects of the "total force" contribution -- active duty, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve -- also shown.

"Since the 9.0-magnitude earthquake and a resulting tsunami struck Japan on March 11, Air Mobility Command-controlled C-17 Globemaster IIIs have flown 42 sorties moving 184 passengers and nearly 272 tons of cargo ranging from search-and-rescue teams to generators that are being used to restore power to areas devastated by the disaster, the report states. "These efforts are part an overall relief effort dubbed Operation Tomodachi. AMC's contribution supports the airlift portion of the efforts, led by Pacific Air Forces at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii."

KC-10 Extenders from the 60th Air Mobility Wing at Travis AFB, Calif., have also flown four missions supporting Tomodachi relief efforts by providing more than 409,000 pounds of fuel via in-air refueling to the C-17s over the Pacific Ocean. Without the KC-10s, the C-17s would need to land and refuel on the ground, adding 2 to 3 hours onto each mission, according to AMC officials.

Mobility Airmen also played a major role in operations to support the no-fly zone over Libya, as part of international efforts to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, the TACC report shows. U.S. military participation in the effort, known as Operation Odyssey Dawn, is being led by U.S. Africa Command with AMC-controlled aircraft providing a combination of airlift and air refueling capabilities to support the overall efforts, according to officials.

Since the Security Council resolution passed March 17, AMC-controlled C-17s,
C-5 Galaxies, C-130 Hercules, and commercial partner aircraft have flown nearly 150 sorties through April 2 delivering more than 1,000 military personnel and 2,500 tons of cargo to bases throughout Europe where U.S. forces are staged.

(Capt. Justin Brockhoff, TACC Public Affairs, contributed to this report.)