ATOC: Keeping the mission moving

Published July 7, 2008
By Senior Airman Ross M. Tweten
380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs Office

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- "If the cargo or passengers never get off the aircraft to meet their requirement the Air Force has bestowed upon them, then how would this war carry on?" asked Staff Sgt. Patrick David of the 380th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron's Air Terminal Operation Center.

They process, weigh, tag, load, balance, upload, break down, download, build up, ship out, and reunite. Simply put, they move us, and all our stuff.

They're the 380th ELRS ATOC, comprised of 12 Airmen, and according to Staff Sgt. Joseph Garcia of the 380th ELRS ATOC, "Whether it's cargo or passengers, if it has to go, we'll make it go."

The ATOC is comprised of several unique functional areas. Together, they directly support the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing's mission, by moving people and cargo safely and expeditiously.

"Virtually every person and piece of cargo here had to come through the ATOC at some point in time," said Senior Airman Joseph Bixler, 380th ELRS ATOC. "It's extremely rewarding to be entrusted with millions of dollars worth of mission essential equipment day in and day out."

The ATOC's Passenger Service section processes passengers, and also checks, weighs, and tags baggage. They also reunite mishandled baggage, commonly referred to as lost luggage, with its warrior in a timely manner. The load planning section consists of weight and balance of the aircraft to prevent mishaps. The cargo processing section breaks down pallets then uploads the TMO trucks so the cargo can be turned over to the customers. They also build up pallets and rolling stock cargo to be shipped. joint inspections section inspects cargo and hazardous items to ensure they are air worthy.

"We move things that most people believe can't be moved, and do it in a short amount of time," said Sergeant Garcia. "The cargo taskings can be something as small as a bag of mail or something vital such as parts for an aircraft. The personnel tasking can range from a single TDY passenger to a full AEF rotation. Winning the Global War On Terror requires equipment and people to run them, and we move the equipment and the people to where they need to go."

A big and sometimes dangerous aspect of the ATOC's job is driving a myriad of vehicles and material handling equipment. A key piece of equipment is the 60K-loader. Known as the Tunner, valued at a shade under $2 million, it's the weapon of choice for the Airmen of the ATOC.

"We're in command of a fleet of mechanical marvels," said Sergeant David. "It takes a lot of dexterity and skill to operate and maneuver the Tunner to the cargo deck of any airframe with an assortment of cargo pallets and rolling stock secured to the deck, ready for upload. Its versatility helps us bring the fight to the respective AORs with astonishing speed and efficiency."

An exciting event in the ATOC world is an Engine Running Operation. During EROs the crew loads the aircraft from behind while the aircraft's engines are still running. The ERO has two purposes: to minimize both the aircraft's ground time, and the aircrews' duty day. The average ERO offloading/uploading can be completed in less than 20 minutes.

During the past six months, the ATOC has coordinated cargo and passenger movement for three rotations, for an airframe mission relocation, and two joint international exercises. They have handled more than 4,000 personnel and 3,500 short-tons of cargo during the past six months.

Like any deployed unit, the ATOC is extremely busy, but the frenetic pace of the deployed environment can be amplified in the ATOC environment.

"The AOR's airflow has got to be the most challenging part of our job," said Staff Sgt. Matthew Drangstveit, 380th ELRS ATOC. "Whether it's not having enough to deplete back-logged cargo and redeploy Airman, or having too much at one time which tends to stretch us thin with our 12-man shop, airflow constantly presents us with a challenge. Of course, we'd prefer to have too much airflow because that would mean all of the 380th's warriors would always be able to get back home in a timely manner. But, like any good thing, too many missions has its down side. We must have ample time to properly inspect, build, manifest, and loadplan the cargo for those missions."

The Airmen of the ATOC know they're a critical link in the kill chain. Their role in bringing the fight to the enemy is significant. As such, they take a lot of pride in their mission.

"Like any career field, there would be no way this war could be fought and someday won without ATOC," said Airman Bixler. "It's extremely rewarding to see troop and cargo movements in the news and think to myself if it wasn't for myself and my fellow coworkers, that would never have been possible."