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Total Force Airmen simultaneously support operations in Libya, Japan, Afghanistan, Iraq and more

  • Published
  • By Capt. Justin Brockhoff
  • Tanker Airlift Control Center Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  Mobility Airmen are playing significant roles supporting the Coalition no-fly zone over Libya as well as humanitarian relief efforts in Japan, all while continuing to support U.S. operations around the world including in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Since the 9.0-magnitude earthquake and a resulting tsunami struck Japan on March 11, AMC-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.

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.

U.S. President Barack Obama quickly pledged U.S. support to Japan after the earthquake and resulting tsunami, emphasizing that "the friendship and alliance between our two nations is unshakeable, and only strengthens our resolve to stand with the people of Japan as they overcome this tragedy."

KC-10 Extenders from the 60th Air Mobility Wing at Travis AFB, Calif., have also flown four missions supporting 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.

In addition to the AMC-controlled forces supporting relief efforts in Japan, mobility Airmen are simultaneously playing 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. 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 delivering more than 1,000 military personnel and 2,500 tons of cargo to bases throughout Europe where U.S. forces are staged.

On top of the airlift operations, AMC, ANG, and AFRC KC-10s and KC-135 Stratotankers have flown more than 350 sorties offloading more than 4.5 million pounds of fuel to fighters and bombers supporting Operation Odyssey Dawn, including B-2 Spirit stealth aircraft that flew missions from the U.S. to Libya and back without a single stop on the ground. The total amount of fuel off-loaded by the tankers would fill a mid-sized sport utility vehicle 37,000 times.

Mission planning and command-and-control for the AMC contributions to both the humanitarian relief efforts in Japan and Operation Odyssey Dawn are being carried out by AMC's Tanker Airlift Control Center at Scott AFB, Ill. As AMC's hub for global operations, the TACC plans, schedules and directs a fleet of nearly 1,300 mobility aircraft in support of strategic airlift, air refueling and aeromedical evacuation operations around the world.

In addition to supporting these high-visibility operations, mobility Airmen and the TACC continue to support missions responsible for the deployment, re-deployment and sustainment of U.S. and coalition personnel for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Today alone, more than 150 AMC-controlled sorties are scheduled to deliver passengers and cargo into the U.S. Central Command area-of-responsibility, according to officials. In addition, AMC forces just finished a major swap-out of more than 170 Army helicopters -- approximately 100 into Afghanistan and another 70 from Afghanistan back to the U.S. -- over the course of five weeks. Four C-5s from the 436th Airlift Wing at Dover Air Force Base, Del., were dedicated to the operation, ensuring the on-time deployment of the U.S. Army's 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, from Fort Campbell, Ky., assumed responsibility from their sister-brigade, the 101st CAB, in February.