U.S. Air Force moves hybrid battalion into Darfur

  • Published
  • By Capt. Erin Dorrance
  • 786th Air Expeditionary Squadron Public Affairs
KIGALI, RWANDA --  The U.S. Air Force provided airlift support to the Rwandan 55th Battalion Oct. 24. The battalion is one of two working as the United Nations-African Union Hybrid Operations in Darfur. The other battalion is from Nigeria.

In July of 2007, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution creating UNAMID. By the beginning of 2008, UNAMID anticipates to have 26,000 troops on the ground in Darfur which would make it the largest current peacekeeping operation in the world, according to a United Nations' report.

In order to reach UNAMID's goal, Rwanda and Nigeria have offered hybrid battalions to ready the Darfur region for the change.

"We are building up the capability for the transition," said Rwandan Lt. Col. Ndore Rurinda, African Union operations officer.

In order to ensure the hybrid battalion from Rwanda was fully supported, Airmen from the 86th Contingency Response Group, Ramstein Air Base, Germany, have been busy loading freshly-painted armored personnel carriers onto C-17 Globemaster aircraft from Charleston Air Force Base, S.C. The Airmen have also been transporting Rwandan Soldiers, food, medicine and equipment in and out of the Darfur region.

Fifty Airmen are working out of Kigali International Airport in Kigali, Rwanda, for the multi-day operation to support the Rwandan Defence Force with airlift support, said Lt. Col. Kevin Therrien, 786th Air Expeditionary Squadron commander.

"We are small, but we are a very efficient and skilled team," said Colonel Therrien. "Everyone here has several specialties and they are performing extremely well."

To date the small team of Airmen have transported approximately 1,500 Rwandan Soldiers and 170 short tons of equipment in and out of Darfur.

"This is the type of mission we train for," said Tech. Sgt. David Taylor, 786th AES contingency response team chief, who has been involved with this mission in Rwanda five times since 2005. "We are happy to be part of this cooperative effort to accomplish the mission."

The 786th AES Airmen will continue to be busy transporting the 800-person hybrid battalion and equipment into the Darfur until the mission is complete.