In response to preliminary reports that possibly point
Hurricane Gustav toward the Gulf Coast of the United States, Air
Force officials are postured to support relief efforts, if needed.
Hurricane Gustav, which formed Aug. 25 about 260 miles southeast of
Haiti, is the third hurricane of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane
season. On Aug. 27, the hurricane was moving away from Haiti. Its
tentative track pointed the storm toward the U.S. Gulf coast,
including Louisiana, where Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005.
Command and control coordination of any humanitarian airlift
effort would be provided by the 618th Tanker Airlift Control Center
here. Personnel from the 618th TACC coordinate an average of 900
airlift and air refueling missions each day, and can seamlessly
redirect these missions to support emerging requirements for
contingency or humanitarian relief operations.
According to Maj. Gen. Mark S. Solo, the 618th TACC commander,
as soon as a hurricane is identified as having potential to strike
the United States, 618th TACC officials begin posturing mobility
forces to be able to respond to various relief scenarios. He said
this "posturing" may include placing aircraft and crews in Bravo
alert status, meaning crews are on standby and ready to launch in
three hours or less from notification.
Other forces used to open and operate temporary remote bases,
known as Contingency Response Group elements, also may be postured
for short notice response in these situations. Humanitarian
operations are a major significant emphasis for the 618th TACC
team.
"The 618th TACC has a long history of preparing for and
assisting civilian authorities following a natural disaster,"
General Solo said.
During hurricanes Katrina and Rita, 618th TACC personnel tasked
nearly 900 sorties to support relief efforts, and mobility forces
moved more than 14,600 passengers, nearly 3,000 patients and hauled
the equivalent of 686 semi-truckloads of supplies to and from the
Gulf Coast region.
After setting up the contingency response cell during Hurricane
Katrina, TACC Airmen rapidly turned requirements into missions for
humanitarian airlift assistance to people on the Gulf Coast. Within
the first 24 hours of Katrina's landfall, TACC officials
aggressively moved search-and-rescue teams and their equipment to
Louisiana and then quickly shifted focus to a hub-and-spoke
operation to bring in supplies and rescue patients.
Contingency Response Group elements from the 615th Contingency
Response Wing at Travis AFB, Calif., and the 621st CRW at McGuire
AFB, N.J., deployed to the Gulf Coast region to establish airfield
operations in support of the massive hurricane relief effort.
During Pakistan earthquake relief operations in 2005, 621st CRW
Airmen supported 273 U.S. missions and provided 15,294,000 pounds
of relief supplies, including more than 93,000 sleeping bags and
292,000 blankets. Wing personnel also loaded 587 trucks and
processed 4,481 pallets. [ANN Thanks Mark Diamond, Headquarters AMC
Public Affairs]