Response element tallies successes in Africa

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Denise Johnson
  • Joint Task Force - Nomad Fire Public Affairs
ACCRA, Ghana --  The flurry of scattered U.S. Air Force uniforms against a backdrop of C-17As, C-21s and C-130s seem to waiver and distort in the heat radiating off the blacktop. The landscape is flat with a border of thick green vegetation in the distance, seemingly outlining a property line.

Unfamiliar commercial aircraft are sporadically parked on the tarmac. The cracks and crevices in the blacktop indicate a want of repair. 

The heat makes mention of itself through the growing dark outlines on the brown and black T-shirts of the maintainers. The crews move with purpose to and from toolboxes and engine compartments, stopping on occasion to cast accusing eyes upward as they wipe the sweat from their brows.

The men and women of the 768th Expeditionary Air Base Squadron are working 24-hour operations in 90-degree-plus heat, but their steps are light in spite of the unrelenting sun and oppressive 65-percent humidity. The 768th EABS joined a number of Airmen, Marines, Soldiers and Sailors to support a series of visits by their Commander in Chief, U.S. President George Bush.

"I'm excited to be a part of this. It's the first time I've been in a position to provide first-hand support to the president," said Staff Sgt. Brendon Risken a crew chief with the 621st Contingency Response Wing out of McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey. "It's always better to be out here, doing my job and applying all the training we receive at home ... It's real."

The President visited the West African countries of Ghana, Liberia and Benin. As the sun crept across the unending sky, the shadows extended until they eventually merged and became one. Night has fallen on Ghana. The work continues.

The clunk of metal on metal carries a short distance before it is muted by the tow vehicle's whirring engine. Tech. Sgt. Richard Bowen, a noncommissioned officer in charge of maintenance with the 621st CRW, leans over the tow assembly using the beam of the headlights to open the pintle hook which in turn releases the pin holding the tow bar in place. With the tow bar free, Sergeant Bowen takes a moment to wipe the perspiration from his clean-shaven head. The dark sky offers no respite from the day's heat as the blacktop projects a store of heat upward. Mosquitoes and bugs dive bomb the headlights. 

The C-17A Globemaster out of Charleston AFB, S. C., will be airborne by daybreak. Shift change comes none too soon at 9 a.m., bringing the 12-hour shift to a close for some and kicking it off for others. The Joint Task Force's Tactical Operations Center bustles with activity and bodies as the previous shift updates the incoming team. 

"Shhhh, can we hold it down a bit folks," asks Tech. Sgt. Neftali Nieves, mobile command and control craftsman with the 621st CRW. Sergeant Nieves resumes contact over the radio, "Go, Panther." The rhetoric continues as the ramp coordinator relays the C-17A's refueling requirements. 

Members of the TOC are responsible for all JTF command and control activities. Their responsibilities include mission management which entails coordinating all airfield activities such as refuelings, landings and take offs. 

Maintainers break into small groups in the shade of a C-17A wing and share small talk. With its 170-foot wingspan, the jet has plenty of shade to offer. Senior Airman Nick Kester, jet engine mechanic, draws a long drink of water from a plastic bottle, letting out a sigh as he replaces the lid. Airman Kester, out of Charleston AFB, is temporarily assigned to the 621st CRW. 

The Globemaster is capable of carrying just less than 100,000 pounds of cargo, but they're not going to carry anything without the sweat of the team beneath the craft. The jets are managed and maintained by the Airmen on the ground, ensuring every electrical component and every piece of hardware is maintained to optimum efficiency. The TOC team tracks the jets and ensures there's enough fuel to take them to their next destination. 

The mission's success is unattainable without their expertise and dedication. 

"We're getting this one in at 1:45 a.m., it'll be bringing parts and vehicles in," said Master Sgt. Orlando Urena, day-shift production superintendent, 621st CRW. 

"Okay, so we are getting a plane in," responds Master Sgt. Paul Zimmerman, night-shift production superintendent, 437th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, Charleston AFB. Sergeant Zimmerman is also temporarily attached to the 621st CRW. 

"Yes, but it doesn't need refueling. We had five come in today," Sergeant Urena continued the end-of-shift turn over. 

As dusk lays a blanket of shadows over the harsh landscape, night falls yet again. And the work goes on.