Cargo movers with the 437th Aerial Port Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C., the hub for delivering shipments of equipment to Southwest Asia, are streamlining the handling and delivery of those shipments. According to a Charleston news release, the 450 military and civilian squadron members cut needless steps by working “closely” with the Tanker Airlift Control Center at Scott AFB, Ill., to manage the cargo flow. Squadron members process as much as 200 tons of supplies each day. Delays in processing weapons arriving into Charleston, for example, evaporated when the initial checker gained approval authority for weapons to be airlifted. Since 95 percent of all weapons don’t require additional clearance, this new step expedited delivery of weapons to the warfighter. Said SSgt. Justin Halterman, “The process itself is now flowing 50 percent quicker and 50 percent more efficiently.”
The Pentagon agency charged with building and operating U.S. spy satellites recently declassified some details about a Cold War-era surveillance program called Jumpseat—a revelation it says sheds light on the importance of satellite imaging technology and how it has advanced in the decades since.
