Travis support to East Coast

  • Published
  • By Captain Melissa Milner
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Throughout the course of the last week, Travis Airmen worked 24-hours a day to launch aircraft, deploy Airmen and load equipment and supplies to assist relief efforts along the eastern seaboard following the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy.

"This was a tremendous effort that Travis Airmen were proud to support," said Col. Dwight Sones, 60th Air Mobility Wing commander. "Our Airmen are used to supporting contingencies around the world, but it means even more to be able to help Americans in need."

Beginning in the late hours of Oct. 31, 30 Airmen from the 60th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron and aerial porters from the 570th Global Mobility Squadron transitioned to March Air Reserve Base in southern California to set up a hub that would airlift nearly 70 Southern California Edison Utility Company power utility vehicles to aid in the restoration of electricity near Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York. Another 10 Airmen from the 60th AMXS would head out the morning of Nov. 1 on a C-17 headed to March.

Nov. 2 at 5 a.m. saw the launch of a 47 Airmen that included a Contingency Response Element from the 621st Contingency Response Wing, as well as seven maintenance Airmen from the 860th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron and Airmen from the 60th Logistics Readiness Squadron. This group was routed to Phoenix to assist the Arizona National Guard in setting up a second hub that would move more than 40 additional power utility trucks provided by Arizona's Salt River Project and Arizona Public Service.

Then the utility trucks started pouring into Travis for assistance in airlift to the New York and New Jersey areas most damaged by the storm. The 60th Aerial Port Squadron worked around the clock to inspect, clean and load utility trucks from Northern California and Nevada.

John Buchanan, 60th APS loadmaster extraordinaire, said his crew was more than ready to work the long and late hours needed to get the cargo moving. However, he said they couldn't do it alone.

"This has been a team effort from the start with our Reserve folks helping as well as the outside support from the Coast Guard, the Department of Energy, PG&E, FEMA, and Nevada Energy," he said. "It has been tremendous working with so many people who are motivated to help."

From coordinating with Air Mobility Command, the 618th Air and Space Operations Center, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as U.S. Northern Command and representatives from commercial power companies, Buchanan's team pulled together what was needed to get the power trucks loaded and on their way.

Working with the Department of Energy, a C-5 Galaxy and a C-17 Globemaster III were launched Nov. 3 from Travis carrying six Western Area Power Administration utility trucks and seven power maintenance personnel from the Sacramento area en route to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. The next day saw the loading and movement of five power utility trucks from Pacific Gas & Electric Company and five large water pumps from the United States Coast Guard, all bound for John F. Kennedy Airport in New York. Later in the weekend on Nov. 4, five utility trucks and eight personnel from Nevada Energy near Reno, Nev., were airlifted to New York as well. Those aircraft were quickly followed by one more loaded with another PG&E utility truck bound for JFK and with a follow-on mission that had more than 22,000 blankets from FEMA headed to JB MDL.

Also bound for JB MDL on Nov. 7 was one more C-17 loaded with two 4,000 KW and one 5,000 KW generators supplied by FEMA, as well as three fuel tanks.

Senior Airman Randall Ard, a C-5 crew chief with the 60th AMXS was one of the Airmen who were part of the second push of maintainers to March ARB. His group supported efforts to move aircraft through the southern California hub. He said he was very excited to be a part of an effort that would help people along the East Coast, and was ready to get to March and start moving aircraft through the hub.

"Who wouldn't want to help people in need," he said. "That's why I joined the Air Force -- to help people out."

Overall from Travis, 5 C-17s and 4 C-5s from Air Mobility Command bases were launched with cargo weighing in at more than 72,000 short tons.