Airmen Support Operation Sahayogi Haat

The 36th Contingency Response Group has helped the Nepal army download four million pounds of cargo from 80 aircraft since arriving at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, on May 5, according to a May 18 release. That’s the most the CRG has downloaded in one disaster, said Capt. Brint Ingersoll, 36th CRG operations officer. The airmen also have helped cut the download time for most aircraft in half over the last two weeks, “averaging 974 pounds of cargo downloaded per minute,” states the release. Airmen and other service members also are helping to link up communications via the Deployable Joint Command and Control system, at an intermediate staging area at Utapao Royal Thai Naval Airfield, Thailand. The system is providing a critical link for Joint Task Force-505—the ongoing humanitarian relief operation to aid earthquake-stuck Nepal. It integrates software, hardware, and other components to support both US, multinational, and nongovernmental agencies participating in relief operations. Air Force TSgt. Philip Lambeth, who helps monitor the DJC2 system at Utapao, said the intermediate base has helped aircraft fly in and out of Nepal in and orderly fashion and helps avoid logistical backups between the various governments and agencies.