Dover entomologists help curb the spread of Zika

Published May 17, 2016
By Senior Airman William Johnson
436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. -- Entomologists from Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, have been at the forefront of the Air Force when it comes to treating aircraft for various insects, rodents and diseases.

Recently, they added a new specialty to their list.

After one European country has responded to the ongoing Zika virus epidemic, the 436th Civil Engineer Squadron pest management section at Dover Air Force Base is ensuring Air Force aircraft are able to fly in the country.

"The Italian government has issued a quarantine, or a requirement, for all U.S. aircraft flying into the country to be disinsected because they want to prevent mosquitos from entering their country and exposing them to Zika," said Staff Sgt. Daniel Fink, 436th CES Pest Management supervisor. "So, we have had to start implementing aircraft treatments."

With missions already planned for Italy, the 436th CES pest management team had less than 24 hours to develop a treatment plan and begin to treat aircraft as a preventative measure after the quarantine was issued. Without their quick response, missions would have either been canceled or diverted.

Kenneth Barnes, 436th CES Pest Management foreman, said because Dover AFB is routinely quarantined for aircraft disinsection, his personnel had the experience and knowledge to develop and implement an effective treatment plan in the short amount of time given.

"We have always been the leaders for aircraft disinsection," said Barnes. "We are the only base that gets quarantined for Japanese Beetles year after year, so we have the experience on treating aircraft. Treating for Zika and treating for the Japanese Beetles is not that much different as far as the way we do it. We just use a different chemical."

Just like treating for Japanese Beetles, the 436th Maintenance Group is responsible for prepping the aircraft for treatment. Once all food and paper goods are removed and oxygen masks are covered, the entomologists from pest management can begin to treat the aircraft.

"We are using an aircraft aerosol insecticide," said Barnes. "It's called Callington 1 Shot. Basically, we go in and fog the entire aircraft from front to back, and it prevents any mosquitos from entering our aircraft and going to other countries."

It takes six aerosol cans to treat a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft and 13 cans to treat a C-5M Super Galaxy aircraft.

Treating the aircraft is a relatively short task. Once the aerosol cans are completely dispensed, the aircraft is sealed for a period of 15-20 minutes for the treatment to take effect. After that, the aircraft is ventilated and certified to travel.

But since the quarantine is in effect for all U.S. aircraft, the 436th CES Pest Management section has been fielding several queries from other bases on how to combat Zika, with questions ranging from how to obtain the chemical, to step-by-step procedures on how to treat the aircraft.

"When this hit, we were the lone man standing with the knowledge and the chemical in-hand to do anything," said Barnes. "So now everybody is like 'ask Dover' and 'what is Dover doing?' and we were able to give them answers."

Barnes and Fink also traveled to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, to train seven personnel from the 87th CES pest management section on treating aircraft to prevent Zika virus.

Staff Sgt. Christopher Harris, 87th CES pest management NCO in charge, said the training allowed for both pest management shops to mirror each other's operations when treating aircraft.

"The Dover pest management shop went through all of the requirements that were put in place to treat aircraft that were outbound to, and through, Italy," said Harris. "The training included verifying all pre-disinsection procedures were complete and ensuring the right amount of pesticide was used, determined by the type of aircraft.

As of now, there is no indication on how long the quarantine will last, but Fink said they are preparing for long-term Zika prevention operations.

"For now, we are going to be treating aircraft for Zika indefinitely," said Fink. "Our focus has been turned from a broad spectrum such as insects, weeds and taking care of other miscellaneous tasks, to solely disease vector prevention."

To see how the 436th CES pest management section treats aircraft for Japanese Beetles, click here.