Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan continues to serve as the focal point for much of the US earthquake-relief aid to Pakistan. Operation Enduring Freedom’s Combined Joint Task Force 76 has orchestrated relief efforts, including the first remote airdrop on Oct. 14. Airmen and soldiers at Bagram worked through the night to finish loading 46,000 pounds of supplies in 43 bundles aboard a USAF C-130, which flew from Bagram to Islamabad, Pakistan. There, US Army helicopters dispersed the bundles, delivering about 20,000 pounds by parachute airdrop to remote areas.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.