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      Members of a U.S. Agency for International Development elite disaster prepare to fly on a Travis Air Force Base C-17 Globemaster III at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., Sept. 20, 2017. At the request of the Mexican government, the team was headed for Mexico to support search and rescue efforts after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the country.  (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford)U.S. responds to Mexico Earthquake with search and rescue teams
                        
                        
                        Members of a U.S. Agency for International Development elite disaster prepare to fly on a Travis Air Force Base C-17 Globemaster III at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., Sept. 20, 2017. At the request of the Mexican government, the team was headed for Mexico to support search and rescue efforts after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the country.  (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        Equipment and medical supplies belonging to a U.S. Agency for International Development elite disaster team are offloaded from a Travis Air Force Base, Calif., Globemaster III at the Mexico City International Airport, Sept. 21, 2017. The team arrived in Mexico to support search and rescue efforts after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the country.  (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford)U.S. sends search and rescue teams in response to Mexico Earthquake
                        
                        
                        Equipment and medical supplies belonging to a U.S. Agency for International Development elite disaster team are offloaded from a Travis Air Force Base, Calif., Globemaster III at the Mexico City International Airport, Sept. 21, 2017. The team arrived in Mexico to support search and rescue efforts after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the country.  (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        Members of an U.S. Agency for International Development elite disaster board a Travis Air Force Base C-17 Globemaster III at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., Sept. 20, 2017. At the request of the Mexican government, the team was headed for Mexico to support search and rescue efforts after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the country.  (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford)U.S. responds to Mexico Earthquake with search and rescue teams
                        
                        
                        Members of an U.S. Agency for International Development elite disaster board a Travis Air Force Base C-17 Globemaster III at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., Sept. 20, 2017. At the request of the Mexican government, the team headed for Mexico to support search and rescue efforts after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the country.  (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Travis AFB C-17 delivers response team to MexicoPublished Sept. 22, 2017
                    
                    By Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford
                    
                    
                    60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
            **TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AFNS)  --**A C-17 Globemaster III from Travis Air Force Base arrived at Mexico City International Airport in support of earthquake relief efforts Sept. 21, 2017. 
The crew delivered 67 U.S. Agency for International Development elite disaster team members and five canines, along with equipment and medical supplies.
“The men and women of the [urban search and rescue team] needed to get to Mexico to support the search and rescue operations after the earthquake,” said Capt. Kyle Brackett, 21st Airlift Squadron. “Helping our allies when they are in need is one of the most important things we do as a nation.”
All USAID disaster team members are also part of the Los Angeles County Fire Department urban search and rescue team and put past training and real-world experiences to use for this mission.
“Several members of the team have traveled to other countries to conduct search and rescue operations during past disasters including in Haiti, China, Nepal and Chile,” said Capt. Whit Gremillion, 21st AS aircraft commander. “They had flown with the Air Force before, and they were familiar with how we operate.”
At the request of the Mexican government, the team arrived in Mexico’s capital to support search and rescue efforts after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the country Sept. 19. The second earthquake in two weeks to strike Mexico collapsed buildings and damaged highways while killing hundreds of people.
The crew flew from Travis AFB to March Air Reserve Base Sept. 20, to load the aircraft. March ARB aerial porters worked through the night to load 76,000 pounds of cargo.
“The short notice tasking isn’t that out of the ordinary for C-17 crewmembers,” said Gremillion. “Our loadmaster had to deal with a non-standard cargo load and unloading in an unfamiliar location and did an outstanding job. The quicker the USAR team was able to get to Mexico, the quicker they could start to assist in  Search operations.”
After completing the mission to Mexico City, the C-17 crew left Sept. 22, for St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands to deliver 114,000 pounds of hurricane relief supplies.
The teams will search buildings side-by-side with Mexican USAR teams to assess for earthquake damage.FEMA 



C-17 Globemaster III 



Travis AFB 



earthquake 



Mexico City 



Rapid Global Mobility 



March ARB 



LAFD 



elite disaster team 



Air Mobility Command 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