Pacific Air Forces’ new humanitarian assistance rapid response team arrived by C-17 in Padang, Indonesia, Oct. 5 to provide medical treatment to local residents after a devastating earthquake struck Indonesia Sept. 30. The 69-member HAART brought about 200,000 pounds of medical supplies and contingency-response equipment with them. Already on Oct. 7, Air Force medics were treating patients in the mobile field hospital that the team erected, helping more than 70 people in just the first eight hours. The HAART’s presence is alleviating the burden on the local hospitals, three of four of which were severely damaged in the earthquake. HAART is a new construct for PACAF. In September, the team was deployed for five days to Micronesian island state of Chuuk for a five-day validation exercise. (Padang report by SSgt. Veronica Pierce)
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
