Efforts by airmen in Afghanistan are making a big difference, says Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz. “You should be very proud of the work you’ve done,” Schwartz told airmen during his Oct. 30 address at the 41st Airlift Tanker Association conference in Nashville, Tenn. As an example, he cited a team from the 615th Contingency Response Group at Travis AFB, Calif., that deployed to a small remote outpost in Afghanistan. Under the lead of SMSgt. Richard Larson, the team supported the delivery of nearly two million square feet of AM-2 aluminum matting, which was used to create the largest temporary aircraft parking area ever constructed, said Schwartz. This work resulted in increasing the C-17 sorties there from one or two daily to more than a dozen. (Nashville report by Mark Voorhis) (For more coverage of Schwartz’s ATA speech, see Bringing It Home.)
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.
