LOUIS ARMSTRONG NEW ORLEANS INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, La -- For one airman first class from Travis Air Force Base, Calif., his first
deployment came with a record-setting pace in support of the relief
effort in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Airman 1st Class Brandon Calderon, 60th Aerial Porter Squadron, left
home at 4 a.m. and arrived here at 9 a. m. Sept. 3 expecting the worst
possible conditions.
“The floodwaters, the death toll, the violence, everything on the
news, that’s what I was expecting," said the Memphis, Tenn.,
native.
Although he found himself somewhat removed from the chaos, he was
heavily involved in the mission.
“We hit the ground running. The first three days we were pushing
120 missions a day,” he said.
From the time he was notified until the first opportunity he had to
sleep, 30 hours had passed. “We didn’t know when we would be able to
sleep,” he said. “We were running on adrenaline.”
After a couple of days he was able to go to the terminal to see what
his efforts had been supporting. As an aerial porter, he helped unload
much of the supplies from military and civilian aircraft to support the
New Orleans evacuation process.
“I was really upset to see that much pain,” he said. “It hit me
all at once and brought it all home. I don’t know what I’d do if it
was my family,” the single Airman said, thinking of his parents and
extended family.
After the evacuee and relief support mission began to wane, Airman
Calderongot got an opportunity to watch the news on the recovery effort.
“I feel like we’re getting slapped in the face every time I turn
on the news,” he said. “We came in here as quickly as possible and
did the fasted job we could in the shortest amount of time.”
His supervisor, Staff Sgt. Michael Humphries, 573rd Global Support
Squadron, Travis AFB, has seen the effort Airman Calderon and the unit
has given.
“He’s a hard charger who puts the mission first,” he said.
Airman Calderon didn’t seem to mind living in a tent city.
“I really think that everybody who’s been thrown into this
environment has done well,” he said. “I’ve made a lot of friends
here.”
For Calderon, the experience has been good, and he considers the
memories he’s made invaluable.
“I really have enjoyed being here,” he said. “Later on, when I
have kids, I’ll be able to tell them that I supported the relief
effort for one of the worst disasters in U.S. history.”