CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Charleston AFB Airmen are now processing all air cargo bound for Iraq.
The 437th Aerial Port Squadron picked up the Baghdad cargo channel Jan. 1 and went from moving an average of 180 tons to 275 tons per day.
"Working the Baghdad channel means about a 25 percent increase in workload for us but it's nothing we can't manage," said Lt. Col. John Pepin, 437 APS commander. "We move all Department of Defense air cargo, not just Air Force cargo. If air cargo is going stateside to Iraq, it's going through Charleston AFB."
Charleston picked up the Baghdad channel from Dover AFB, Del.
"The bulk of the cargo is going to Iraq and we have surpassed Dover by far in tonnage," said 2nd Lt. Chris Jacobson, 437 APS cargo services officer in charge. "We have a true underdog story because we have a smaller facility, less equipment and fewer people than the Dover aerial port."
The majority of all the cargo is transported over the Atlantic on Boeing 747s and C-5s.
"We use the bigger aircraft because we can carry 42 pallet positions on a 747, as opposed to a C-17, which carries 18," said Lieutenant Jacobson.
Prior to the change, the 437 APS typically filled two 747s or C-5s with cargo daily. With the additional cargo they will be see an increase in regularly scheduled aircraft.
"We move everything from computers and television sets to oil, humvee hoods and flex patches, which is a quick repair for runways," said Airman 1st Class Aldea Hersel, air transportation journeyman.
"Everything that you see here is considered priority cargo," said Lieutenant Jacobson. "If it's coming through our port it means they need it extremely fast."
The port's workload is also in flux due to a January deployment of 81 aerial porters. The majority of these Airmen went to work aerial port operations in Iraq.
To offset the deployments, Air Mobility Command augmented the Charleston workforce with 51 additional people. The 437 APS utilizes its augmentees in all facets of their mission.
"We depend on our civilian and Reserve counterparts to help perform our daily mission. They work in all areas from processing cargo in the warehouse to pushing pallets on aircraft," said Lieutenant Jacobson.
Charleston now processes all cargo for Iraq while Dover handles all cargo going to Afghanistan. Airmen like Tech. Sgt. Stephanie Northup know that despite the extra workload they must be able to keep up with the pace.
"Our job is to supply Iraq one piece of cargo at a time," she said. "It's all about saving lives."