From: CMSgt Mike Bergman <bergman@afnews.pa.af.mil>
Subject: AF News Svc 09/09/92
Organization: Hq Air Force News Agency/SCC
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 1992 16:29:50 GMT


From CMSgt Mike Bergman <bergman@afnews.pa.af.mil>

706.  T-38 accident (corrected)
707.  ROTC faculty deadline
708.  Airlift update
709.  Homestead airlift
710.  Airlift maintenance
711.  Family survival
712.  Atlantic rescue
713.  New Jersey Guard openings
714.  CHAMPUS handbook
715.  Productivity awards
716.  Legal exchange
717.  POW-MIA day
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706.  T-38 accident (corrected)
NOTE TO EDITORS:  Replace AFNS story No. 697 with the following.
     DYESS AFB, Texas (AFNS) -- An Air Force T-38 instructor pilot was killed
Sept. 3 when a bird crashed through the windshield of his aircraft.
     1st Lt. David A. Wyatt, 90th Flying Training Wing, Sheppard AFB, Texas,
died while on a training mission near Dyess.
     1st Lt. Richard S. Groggel, also an instructor pilot from the 90th FTW,
was in the rear seat of the T-38 and was not injured.  He safely landed the
aircraft at Dyess.
     The Air Force is investigating.


707.  ROTC faculty deadline
     WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- The Air Force is accepting Air Force ROTC faculty
duty applications from colonels and colonel selectees through Oct. 1 for
vacancies next summer.
     Individuals interested in applying must have a superior performance
record, master's degree and retainability through summer 1998.
     Applicants must also have a minimum of three years at their current
location by August 1993 unless they are returning from overseas or completing
a controlled tour.
     While every effort will be made to place people at their school of
choice, applicants will be considered for any projected openings.
     Some schools require personal interviews and the final selection is
approved by the college or university.
     Information on specific vacancies and application procedures is available
at local personnel offices.


708.  Airlift update
     WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Disasters around the world have kept Air Mobility
Command crews airborne, delivering much needed and precious supplies to
starving people in Africa and storm-devastated citizens of Florida and Guam.
     On an average day, AMC aircraft conduct more than 500 missions per day.
In the wake of Hurricane Andrew, that number exceeds 700 missions in a single
day.
     As of Sept. 9, AMC and AMC-chartered aircraft had flown 875 missions into
southern Florida, delivering a total of 20,483 tons of relief supplies and
emergency equipment and 11,956 passengers, mainly U.S. soldiers and Marines
assisting in the cleanup.
     Military transports and charter aircraft have delivered the goods to
Miami International Airport, Homestead AFB and Opa Locka, Fla.
     Meanwhile, a total of 2,192 metric tons of food have been flown to
starving people in Somalia and Kenya.  More than 150 missions have been flown
into the beleaguered African nations.
     Operation Provide Relief began Aug. 21 as an on-going mission to supply
food to strife-ridden regions of Somalia and Kenya in northeastern Africa.
The transports have also been tasked to move Pakistani troops into Somalia as
part of the United Nations relief effort.
     Victims of Typhoon Omar continue to receive relief supplies after Omar
ripped through the western Pacific Aug. 28.
     As of Sept. 8, C-5s C-141s and C-130 transports of AMC flew 48 missions
delivering thousands of tons of emergency aid to Guam.
     Since early 1991, Air Force aircraft have flown relief missions around
the world, including:
     -- Operation Provide Comfort, which provided food and clothing for
Kurdish citizens displaced from Iraq following the Persian Gulf conflict.
     -- Operation Sea Angel, which provided food, medicine and clothing to the
people of Bangledesh after one of their worst monsoon seasons ever.
     -- Operation Provide Hope, a massive relief effort for the people of the
former Soviet Union.
     -- Operation Provide Promise, delivering supplies to the people of
war-torn Sarajevo.


709.  Homestead airlift
by SSgt. Thomas R. Palmer Jr.
     HOMESTEAD AFB, Fla. (AFNS) -- Of four temporary tactical airlift control
elements activated to support relief efforts after Hurricane Andrew blew
through south Florida Aug. 24, the Homestead operation has been one of the
busiest.
     Under the direction of Lt. Col. John Commander, a reservist assigned to
the 94th Airlift Wing at Dobbins AFB, Ga., 112 Air Force members from Dobbins,
Pope AFB, N.C., Dyess AFB, Texas, Dover AFB, Del., and McGuire AFB, N.J., have
been working around the clock, handling the landing, parking, off-loading,
maintenance and take-off of cargo and tanker aircraft flying relief supplies
and equipment into southern Florida.
     As of Sept. 4, more than 500 missions have flown into Homestead, carrying
7,114 passengers and more than 22 million pounds of cargo.
     "In the beginning we were strictly a daytime operation while some sort of
runway lights and a tower could be installed," Commander said.
     "After a few days we got some battery-operated lights up and running and
a ground-level air traffic control system going.  Since then, my folks have
been going around the clock."
     Unit technicians receive information on what type of aircraft is inbound
and the type of cargo it's carrying.  This information is relayed to Commander
so he can get the appropriate load team ready.
     Once the aircraft is down, the unit goes into action.  The aircraft is
directed to a parking spot, the wheels are chalked and the cargo off-loaded.
Quickly.
     "There are times when we have aircraft arriving one after another, and
parking space on the ramp becomes scarce," Commander said.
     "That's why it's critical to get the planes out of here fast."
     Depending on the aircraft and its load, the team can have the aircraft
parked, off-loaded and on its way, often within 12 minutes.  Depending on the
cargo configuration, the team has been able to do it even quicker.  (Palmer is
assigned to the AMC office of public affairs.  Courtesy of AMC News Service)


710.  Airlift maintenance
by SSgt. Thomas R. Palmer Jr.
     HOMESTEAD AFB, Fla. (AFNS) -- Keeping aircraft moving and parking spaces
available is vital to the success of the relief effort in southern Florida.
     The quicker aircraft can land, drop off their cargo and take off, the
quicker the relief supplies can reach the people who need them.
     The task of keeping the aircraft moving falls to MSgt. Carl Richards,
Dover AFB, Del., and his maintenance crew of 49 people.
     "Since we've been here, we've only had two planes break down out of more
than 500," said Lt. Col. John Commander, head of the Air Mobility Command
Tactical Airlift Control Element.  "The maintenance folks went out, fixed the
problems and got the planes back in the air in minimal time."
     Like many of the functions here, the maintenance shop began as a
daylight-only operation until lighting for the runway was available.
     "We're now a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week operation," Richards said.  "But,
it was tough going the first few days we were here.  We were expected to have
a fully operational maintenance set up with minimal equipment and people."
     When the maintainers first arrived, there wasn't even a maintenance
building.
     They kept all of the equipment and tools inside their trucks and worked
out of them for the first five days of airlift operations.
     "We now have a maintenance tent where my guys can come in and have a seat
and get out of the sun or the rain," Richards said.
     Richards has at his disposal C-5, C-130 and C-141 maintenance experts, as
well as several general aircraft maintenance specialists.  No matter what type
of aircraft comes in, his people can fix it, Richards said.
    "As for the success of this operation, a lot of the credit goes to guys
pounding the ramp 12 hours a day.  I've got maintenance people from all over
the Air Force, and they're the best.  They're a great working team."
     Hopefully, as the airlift of supplies continues, there won't be much call
for maintenance, but "it's great knowing I've got people I can count on the
get the job done," Commander said.  (Palmer is assigned to the AMC office of
public affairs.  Courtesy of AMC News Service)


711.  Family survival
by SSgt. Thomas R. Palmer Jr.
     HOMESTEAD AFB, Fla. (AFNS) -- 1st Lt. Harold Brackins was loading some of
his family's personal belongings into the rented trailer parked in his
driveway.
     Stopping for a moment, he surveyed the situation around and said, "I was
one of the lucky ones, my roof didn't come off."
     For the thousands of men and women assigned to Homestead AFB, lucky isn't
a word heard very often.  The Air Combat Command base in southern Florida was
one on of the hardest hit areas by Hurricane Andrew on Aug. 24.
     Brackins, assigned to the 726th Air Control Squadron (the squadron has
since been relocated to Shaw AFB, S.C.), evacuated with his family at 3:30
p.m. Aug. 23.  He returned to his home Aug. 28.
     "What I saw was just unbelievable," he said.  "There was nothing left.
Some people lost everything.  When I got to my house, I saw my roof was intact
and I knew I was just one of a handful of lucky ones."
     Despite the severity of the hurricane, Brackins suffered only minor
damage to his household goods, mostly from water.  He packed up his furniture
and other personal belongings to take back to St. Petersburg where he had left
his family.
     His second trip back on Sept. 4 was just to pick up a few things he had
left in the closets.
     "I don't know why I was so fortunate.  I can't begin to imagine what it
would have been like to be here while the hurricane was going through here."
     Brackins has since received a payment from his insurance company and is
preparing for his next assignment.  He will attend school and then be assigned
to Tyndall AFB, Fla., as a weapons director instructor.
     "I plan to come back here later this year to visit some friends to see
how they are doing," he said.  "We had a lot of friends in the civilian
community, and I feel sorry for them.
     "The Air Force is really taking care of its people.  I still have a job,
a place to live and most of my belongings.  But for these people, this was it,
they've lost everything."  (Palmer is assigned to the AMC office of public
affairs.  Courtesy of AMC News Service)


712.  Atlantic rescue
by SSgt. Alex Smith
     CHARLESTON AFB, S.C. (AFNS) -- An Air Force C-141 transport aircrew
helped in the rescue of a critically ill crewman aboard a Yugoslavian ship
Sept. 1.
     The aircrew picked up a distress signal about 700 miles east of Puerto
Rico from the "Slano," steaming in the Atlantic Ocean, said aircraft
commander, Capt. Samuel D. Cox, temporarily assigned to the 437th Airlift
Wing, Charleston AFB, S.C.  One of the crew members ship needed immediate
medical attention.
     Cox and nine members from the 14th Airlift Squadron, were originally
tasked to fly a local airdrop mission that day when the call came in from the
Air Force Rescue Coordination Center, Scott AFB, Ill.
     "We weren't given much information other than to go to Patrick AFB, Fla.,
and pick up some rescue personnel and equipment," Cox said.  "The cargo turned
out to be three pararescue specialists from the 41st Air Rescue Squadron and a
Kodiak rescue raft loaded with medical supplies."
     After leaving Patrick AFB, the crew worked with the Coast Guard Atlantic
Rescue Coordination Center, which was in charge of the rescue mission.
Working with the rescue center, the 14th ALS crew plotted a course and headed
out to find the Slano.
     "We finally made contact with the ship," Cox said.  "Through some broken
English, a little bit of coordination and good eyeballs, we finally sighted
the ship."
     With the ship cited, the three pararescuers did a freefall jump with
their equipment from 3,500 feet into the Atlantic Ocean -- right on the mark.
     "The jump went well," said Capt. James D. Clifton, a pilot from the 14th
ALS.  "We circled the ship until they got on board."
     The crew received reports on the way back to Charleston that the crew
member aboard the ship had been stabilized and was scheduled to be flown by
helicopter the next day to the island of Martinique -- mission complete.
     "It was an entire crew effort that made this mission successful," Cox
said.  "It was a very rewarding experience to help
someone in need of assistance." (Smith is assigned to the 437th Airlift Wing.
Courtesy of Air Mobility Command News Service)


713.  New Jersey Guard openings
     ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AFNS) -- The 177th Fighter Group has immediate
part-time openings for people leaving active duty.
     Enlisted vacancies exists in a number of career fields including aircraft
maintenance, civil engineering, life support and refueling.
     More information is available by calling the unit at DSN 455-6212 or
collect (609) 646-2113.


714.  CHAMPUS handbook
     AURORA, Colo. (AFNS) -- CHAMPUS has updated its handbook with the latest
information about standard program benefits, procedures and eligibility
requirements.
     The 156-page handbook will soon be available to service families.  The
last booklet was published in 1990.
     The new book also includes information on the active-duty dependents
dental care program and CHAMPVA, a program similar to CHAMPUS for families of
disabled veterans operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
     The handbook is being shipped to military service distribution centers,
to the U.S. Public Health Service, and headquarters offices of all CHAMPUS
claims processors.
     Individuals can obtain copies from the nearest health benefits adviser.


715.  Productivity awards
     WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- The Air Force has named the 1991 winners of its
productivity enhancement awards for professional excellence.
     Award recipients are:
     -- Capt. Douglas J. Taylor, Langley AFB, Va., officer of the year.
     -- MSgt. Hal G. Slaughter, Nellis AFB, Nev., airman of the year.
     -- Marvin E. Pinson, Randolph AFB, Texas, civilian of the year.
     -- Air Training Command, major command category.  Brig. Gen. Donald L.
Peterson, 12th Flying Training Wing commander, Randolph, accepted the award on
behalf of ATC.
     The annual awards recognize individuals and commands for their
contributions to the enhancement of Air Force productivity.
     Gen. Michael P.C. Carns, Air Force vice chief of staff, will present the
awards in a Pentagon ceremony Sept. 11.


716.  Legal exchange
     WASHINGTON (AFNS) --Four Air Force judge advocates will visit their
Venezuelan counterparts Sept. 13-17 to promote stronger ties with Latin
American air forces.
     Brig. Gen. Nolan Sklute, deputy judge advocate general, and three others
will go to Caracas, Venezuela, for the second half of a judge advocate subject
matter expert exchange, sponsored by the Air Force international affairs'
Latin American Cooperation program.
     The judge advocate general, Maj. Gen. David C. Morehouse, hosted a visit
to Washington by the Venezuelan air force's senior legal officer in May in the
first part of the exchange program.
     While in Caracas, Air Force judge advocates will host discussions with
senior Venezuelan military officers, emphasizing the military's role in a
democratic society.  They will also brief on military justice, counterdrugs,
and the structure and function of the Air Force judge advocate general's
department.
     Venezuelan air force members will brief the visiting Americans on their
mission, organization and general functions.
     The September visit directly supports the Defense Department's policy
encouraging high-level military exchanges with Venezuela, Morehouse said in a
memo to the secretary of the Air Force.
     It also supports U.S. Southern Command objectives of strengthening
democratic institutions and enhancing the professionalism of Latin American
militaries, he said.


717.  POW-MIA day
     WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- National POW-MIA Day is Sept. 18 to honor prisoners
of war and those still missing in action, and the Department of Veterans
Affairs will host special observances and ceremonies across the country.
     POW-MIA Day is proclaimed each year by the president and Congress.  Many
Veterans Affairs ceremonies scheduled this year are in conjunction with
Department of Defense installations, local governments and other veterans
service organizations.
     The VA is distributing a Recognition Day poster to all veterans and
Defense Department installations, Coast Guard and postal service facilities,
state veterans offices, and veterans and private organizations to publicize
ceremonies and promote the observance.

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    |               bergman@afpan.pa.af.mil                            |  
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