KC-10 crew performs good deed while training

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Shawn J. Jones
  • 514th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  A flight crew of Reserve Airmen performed a mission Sept. 3 - 4 that will result in warmer winters for many men, women and children living in Afghanistan.

The Airmen, from the 76th Air Refueling Squadron, flew a KC-10 Extender to Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., to pick-up 10 fully-loaded pallets of winter clothing, blankets and shoes that are destined for orphanages and villages near Kabul, Afghanistan, later this month.

Though flying privately-donated humanitarian cargo is not one of the Air Force's primary missions, organization may request their donation be transported through the Denton Program. The program, which was developed by former Alabama Senator and Vietnam Prisoner of War Jeremiah Denton, allows humanitarian donations to be transported on military aircraft on a space-available basis at the convenience of the military.

The Denton mission to Seymour Johnson AFB was not just a humanitarian mission. It also provided a training opportunity for the crew of reservists. While they had plenty of recent experience performing the KC-10's aerial refueling mission, several Airmen who were new to the squadron needed additional training with the aircraft's cargo transportation mission.

Lieutenant Col. Mike Brown, the crew's mission commander, said his squadron sought out this particular mission and was pleased that his crew would participate in relevant training while performing a good deed.

"It's a great opportunity to use our expertise to help ease the burden of the Afghan people," he said.

Technical Sgt. Victor Torres was one of the primary beneficiaries of the cargo training. Sergeant Torres had recently switched his career specialty to become a KC-10 boom operator and had little practical experience with loading cargo. The Denton mission enabled him to learn his new trade while working alongside the two more seasoned boom operators on the crew, Technical Sgt. Daniel Timko and Staff Sgt. Devon Jarvis.

Sergeant Torres said the mission provided valuable hands-on experience which convinced him to devote more attention to the mathematical formulas he used to ensure the humanitarian cargo was optimally balanced on the aircraft.

The Air Force is no stranger to delivering humanitarian supplies to foreign countries. In fact, one of the Air Force's first major challenges was transporting humanitarian cargo during the Berlin Airlift, which was one of the defining events of the Cold War. The massive airlift operation was an early triumph for the young Air Force, and signified air power's contribution to rebuilding democracy in post-World War II Europe.

Though Denton missions cannot match the scope of the Berlin Airlift, they can contribute to an overall rebuilding strategy in Afghanistan.

"We're not just there to defeat the Taliban," Colonel Brown said. "We want the people of Afghanistan to be able to stand on their own as our ally."

The Denton program is jointly administered by U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of State, and the Department of Defense. The Denton Program must be used to support on-going relief and development projects, must be consistent with U.S. foreign policy objectives and must provide legitimate humanitarian assistance to the recipients.


Editor's Note: More information about the Denton Program can be found at http://hatransportation.ohasis.org.