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Teamwork critical to air transportation mission

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Nathanael Callon
  • 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  When Airman 1st Class Michael Bethell first joined the Air Force, he had no idea his job of moving cargo on and off aircraft would be so important to service members in combat.
"I've driven mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles, tractors, forklifts--anything we can transport, I've driven it," said Bethell, who is an air transportation specialist assigned to the 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron ramp section and a native of Long Island, N.Y.

Bethell and 73 other Airmen in the cargo and ramp sections work around the clock to ensure critical supplies, cargo, and fuel make it to service members who are serving in forward deployed locations in Afghanistan and other parts of Southwest Asia.

"We process a lot of cargo," said Tech. Sgt. Jonathan Bain, 8th EAMS cargo processing section NCO in charge.

After the cargo arrives from the U.S. or other deployed bases, a team from the cargo processing section sorts the cargo according to its destination.

"We decide if the cargo is stopping here or if it is just in transit," said Bain, who is a native of Rome, Ga.

Some cargo arrives in bulk and has to be broken down for multiple bases, so each base has its own staging areas.

"When we get a mission from the [squadron's] load planning section, we finish building the pallets and prepare them for loading onto the aircraft," he said.

As the cargo processing section finishes their part of the job, the ramp section takes over the transportation of the equipment to the aircraft.

"Everybody in the squadron works together to get the mission accomplished. Time constraints really play a big factor in getting a plane loaded on time, so teamwork is essential," said Master Sgt. Joshua White, 8th EAMS Air Freight superintendent and native of Boerne, Texas.

The Airmen strictly follow a sequence of events, or else the aircraft may miss its mission start time.

"There is constant communication between all of our sections to make sure the plane makes it off the ground when it is supposed to," said White. "If we don't get the plane loaded in time, that cuts into the aircrew's ability to perform their mission because an hour delay on the ground could affect their flight schedule."

Lost time on the ground could mean lost time during the crew day, White explained.

"They may have plans to unload at three or four bases in Afghanistan before coming back. If they get off schedule, they may only be able to reach two of those bases," said White. "That means those supplies won't make it to the other bases until the crew has had their adequate rest. That extra day could have been life or death for those Soldiers waiting for food and supplies."

The air transportation specialists work hard to get the nearly 12,000 tons of cargo per month to their destinations on time.

"There is an understanding that there are going to be challenges and obstacles every day," said White. "Every time we receive our tasking, it is going to be a different configuration and so you have to learn to use your head. There's no cookie-cutter approach to loading an aircraft."

"The work is stressful, but the Airmen take pride in what they do," White added.

For Bethell, the satisfaction of a job well done is a little more simple.

"I just like driving the vehicles," he said with a smile.