Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Operation Christmas Drop continues as Pacific traditionPublished Dec. 9, 2013
                    
                    By Senior Airman Marianique Santos
                    
                    
                    36th Wing Public Affairs
            **ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam (AFNS) --**Base volunteers here will team up with Airmen from Yokota Air Base, Japan, to conduct humanitarian airdrops over the remote islands of Micronesia in the Western Pacific this week.
Volunteers here have been spreading the holiday cheer to surrounding islands since December 1952. Operation Christmas Drop is the longest running humanitarian airlift mission supported by the Department of Defense.
U.S. military service members, their families, and the people of Guam teamed up with the Christmas Drop Organization to ensure a successful mission.The Christmas Drop Organization is a private organization of volunteers that directs fundraising efforts, coordinates the gathering of donated items, and oversees community involvement activities.
"The yearly success of this drop is a testament to the generosity of the civilian and military population of Guam," said Master Sgt. Bobby Lynch, the Operation Christmas Drop committee president. "We continue to do this to help improve the quality of life of the islanders. We may take it for granted that we can go to a mall to purchase our daily needs, but these folks do not have the same privilege from where they live."
Operation Christmas Drop packages aid the men and women of more than 50 islands, including Chuuk, Palau, Yap, Marshall Islands and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Boxes contain toys, clothing, fishing equipment, sporting goods, food items, tools and other equipment that help people in the islands with their livelihood.
"In the spirit of the holiday season, what we can do is help and share what we have," Lynch said.
In addition to collaborating with the community of Guam, Operation Christmas Drop demonstrates the inter-wing partnership between Andersen AFB and Yokota AB.
Each December, C-130 Hercules crews from the 374th Airlift Wing fly to Andersen AFB, which is used as a "base camp" to airlift the donated goods to islanders throughout Micronesia. Yokota AB aircrews find valuable training opportunities through the unique airdrop environment that Operation Christmas Drop offers.
Andersen AFB Christmas Drop volunteers stress the importance the packages have on the daily lives of the Micronesians receiving them.
"This drop cannot happen successfully without the participation of everyone, regardless of which branch you belong to or whether or not you're in the military," Lynch said.Anderson AFB 



Guam 



Operation Christmas Drop

Related Links
        Christmas Drop: Airmen deliver gifts, supplies to remote Pacific Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil