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U.S. Air Forces Central

Video by Staff Sgt. Danielle Sukhlall

Afghanistan NEO Reflections: MSgt Joel Therrion

United States Air Forces Central

Oct. 12, 2021 | 3:04

U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Joel Therrion, U.S. Air Forces Central Military Working Dog Program Manager, talks about his experience in the Afghanistan Non-combatant Evacuation Operations (NEO) for Operation Allies Refuge (OAR) at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar. During the Afghanistan NEO, Master Sgt. Therrion coordinated the largest movement of military working dogs and their handlers in CENTCOM history, moving 51 contracting dogs from Hamid Karzai International Airport, Kabul along with their handlers to safe refuge in a day. Operation Allies Refuge was the largest NEO airlift in U.S. history evacuating over 124,000 people in the span of 17 days. When the first C-17 Globemaster III took off from the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul and landed at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, the base became the primary hub of transit for Afghanistan evacuees.

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