An official website of the United States government

Here's how you know

Official websites use .mil

A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.

Secure .mil websites use HTTPS

A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

U.S. Air Forces Central

Afghan airlifters

Members of the Afghan National Army Air Corps load a tug truck bound for Herat on a C-27 Spartan June 8, 2010, at Kabul International Airport, Afghanistan. This was the first operational heavy-equipment airlift mission planned and conducted by ANAAC soldiers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Rob Leese/RELEASED).

Photo Details / Download Hi-Res

Afghans fly first heavy-equipment airlift mission

Published June 11, 2010
438th Air Expeditionary Wing

KABUL -- Soldiers from the Afghan National Army Air Corps loaded and airlifted a tug truck June 8, 2010, after coordinating and planning its first-ever, operational heavy-equipment airlift mission.

The soldiers cut days of transit time from Kabul International Airport to Herat by airlifting the vehicle instead of traveling Afghan roads by convoy.

Afghanistan is roughly the size of Texas, 250,000 square miles -- but has only 12,000 miles of roadways and is home to the Hindu Kush mountain range with peaks above 20,000 feet.

For comparison, the state of Vermont, at 9,609 square miles, has roughly 14,000 miles of roads.

Afghan airlifters