Teamwork provides relief

Airman First Class Christian Ruhe and Staff Sgt. Manuel Chacon guide Javed Iqbal, a Peshawar International Airport ramp supervisor, as he backs a pallet of halal meals out of a C-17 Globemaster III Aug. 2, 2010, in Peshawar, Pakistan. Airman Ruhe and Sergeant Chacon are both loadmasters assigned to the 817th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Chris Sukach)

Teamwork provides relief

Tech. Sgts. Gregory Boshears and Kevin Paridee load a pallet of halal meals onto a C-17 Globemaster III Aug. 2, 2010, at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, for transportation into the flood-stricken areas of northwest Pakistan. Sergeants Boshears and Paridee are members of the 455th Aerial Port Squadron. (U.S. Air Force photo/Capt. Chris Sukach)

Joint Base Charleston airlift squadron provides humanitarian relief

Published Aug. 17, 2010
By 2nd Lt. Susan Carlson
Joint Base Charleston Public Affairs

JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. -- In the aftermath of devastating Pakistani floods, millions of victims are in dire need of food, water and supplies. In response, Team Charleston's 15th Airlift Squadron took part in a different kind of mission Aug. 2 at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan.

Deployed as members assigned to the 817th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, the aircrew teamed up with the Army to deliver pallets full of halal meals. These meals make up the some 345,000 that have been delivered since July 31 to the flood victims in areas that have been hit hard by monsoon rains.

"Thanks to the unique capabilities of the C-17, we were able to deliver nearly 150,000 pounds of food on this mission alone," said Capt. Timothy Goodwillie, aircraft commander of the mission. "It's a great feeling to have the opportunity to deliver aid to those who really need it."

The mission, tasked to the 817th EAS by the 618th Tanker Airlift Control Center at Scott Air Force Base, Ill. -- the primary command and control authority for all C-17 missions -- is not the typical mission completed in a deployed environment.

"It is not everyday that you get a humanitarian mission, so I feel grateful to have the opportunity to do it," said Staff Sgt. Manuel Chacon, a loadmaster from the 817th EAS.

The unique circumstances of the humanitarian mission offered a few new challenges for the 817th EAS. Although planning for the mission was not much different than any other, on very short notice, the C-17 crew had to fly and land at an airfield they had never been to previously, said Captain Goodwillie.

"We were tasked with going from one place to another twice in the same evening, which made for nearly an 18-hour duty day," said Captain Goodwillie.

Despite the difficulty, the crew was able to provide relief to just a small portion of the some 20 million Pakistanis affected by the floods ... but every little piece helps.

"Because of offloading delays, we pushed through an extremely long day to make sure that the relief aid was getting to those who needed it," said Airman 1st Class Christian Ruhe, a loadmaster from the 817th EAS.

According to the latest news sources, to date, the United States has committed more than $87 million in relief aid and plans to give more in the days to come.

"This was a great opportunity to help the Pakistani people," said Sergeant Chacon, "and helping others is one of the main reasons why I chose to join the Air Force."