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 from the University of Nebraska’s National Strategic Research Institute, KC-46 Pegasus crew members and 155th Air Refueling Wing Airmen discuss airflow particle test results at the 155th ARW, Nebraska National Guard Air Base, Lincoln, Neb., April 10, 2020. The Air Mobility Command, the university's medical center and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency examined airflow to assess ways to eliminate virus transmission to aircrew when transporting COVID-19 patients. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Shannon Nielsen)200410-Z-WI371-080
                        
                        
                        Members from the University of Nebraska’s National Strategic Research Institute, KC-46 Pegasus crew members and 155th Air Refueling Wing Airmen discuss airflow particle test results at the 155th ARW, Nebraska National Guard Air Base, Lincoln, Neb., April 10, 2020. The Air Mobility Command, the university's medical center and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency examined airflow to assess ways to eliminate virus transmission to aircrew when transporting COVID-19 patients. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Shannon Nielsen)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Aircraft airflow tested in Nebraska to reduce COVID-19 spreadPublished April 15, 2020
                    
                    By  Senior Master Sgt. Shannon Nielsen
                    
                    
                    155th Air Refueling Wing
            **LINCOLN, Neb. (AFNS) --**The U.S. Air Force’s**Air Mobility Command** sent multiple airframes to the Nebraska Air National Guard base to test airflow and reduce the risk to aircrews transporting COVID-19 patients.



“**United States Transportation Command** expressed a joint, urgent, operational-need request for high-capacity airlift of COVID-19 passengers,” said Maj. Dave Sustello, AMC Test and Evaluation Squadron operations officer.



Active duty, Reserve and Air National Guard components from AMC, in coordination with the University of Nebraska Medical Center and**Defense Advanced Research** Projects Agency, worked April 4-11 at the **155th Air Refueling Wing** examining airflow and particles to assess ways to prevent the spread of the coronavirus to aircrew.



The first airflow tests were conducted on the**KC-135 Stratotanker**, **C-17 Globemaster III**and **C-130J Hercules** aircraft, followed by the **KC-46 Pegasus**, **KC-10 Extender**and C-5M Super Galaxy.



“(We’re) evaluating different airframes for the ability to transport potentially symptomatic patients safely while protecting aircrew and medical personnel,” said Dr. Joshua Santarpia, UNMC Microbiology and Pathology associate professor. “(To do this, we’re) looking at what happens to particles produced by people and how they might move around the airframe.”



Experts from multiple scientific fields used a method of dispersing aerosol DNA tag beads during the process, a concept Santarpia invented two years ago.



After the beads were released, multiple tests were performed in the air and on the ground. These included taping off and numbering small areas of the aircraft’s floor to capture surface samples.



“Basically, we run multiple tasks on an airframe to understand if bead one, released at the rear of the aircraft, made it up to the front; or if bead two, released in the middle of the plane, (made) it up to the front of the aircraft,” said Dillan Cunningham, with the National Strategic Research Institute at the university.



Cunningham said understanding the airframe’s aerodynamics – the airflow – is vital to minimizing the spread of infectious molecules in the aircraft.



“The best potential way to achieve success of this mission is understanding the best configuration to transport personnel, servicemen and women, and everyone else back home for treatment without potentially infecting everyone, endangering other people and putting undue risk and burden on the crew,” Cunningham said.



Sustello credited UNMC and all the entities that took part in this mission to preserve and protect the health of the mobility force.



“This was world-class support,” Sustello said. “Anything and everything that we’ve asked for they’ve been able to provide, and I’m seeing that Nebraska work ethic shine through.”



The 155th Air Refueling Wing was selected for the high-priority mission because of the proximity of the air base, allowing multiple aircraft to fly in and remain on the ramp-space provided.



“The testing that took place this week is all about mitigating the risk to our Airmen while providing combatant commanders around the world with the capability to rapidly repatriate personnel who are either infected or exposed to COVID-19,” said Col. John Williams, 155th Air Refueling Wing, Operations Group commander. “The research is not just applicable to the current outbreak. The lessons learned here in Nebraska will be valuable to future operations as well.”FS 



USAF 



AF 



Air Force 



COVID-19 



Air National Guard 



ANG 



Nebraska Air National Guard 



Air Mobility Command 



AMC 



Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency 



DARPA 



University of Nebraska 



airflow 



155th Air Refueling Wing 



KC-135 Stratotanker 



C-17 Globemaster III 



C-130J Hercules 



KC-46 Pegasus 



KC-10 Extender 



C-5M Super Galaxy

Related Links
        How the National Guard is helping across the country
            
            Photos of the National Guard response
            
            The latest from the CDC
            
            U.S. response
            
            White House-CDC response 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