Aerial porters team up with Army Guard to support overseas mission

Published May 4, 2016
By By MSgt. Andrew Biscoe
439th Airlift Wing

WESTOVER AIR RESERVE BASE, Mass. -- Joint-service spirit teamed Airmen with the 42nd Aerial Port Squadron with Army National Guard and active-duty Air Force Aircrews to load a C-130J Super Hercules recently.

The Army Guard's 20th Special Operations Group called upon the aerial porters March 23 for help with inspecting, building and loading the cargo onto a C-130J. The porters reviewed the plans to move the cargo with some of the Army members at a Chicopee armory.

On the day they loaded the pallet of ammunition with the C-130's engines running, the 42nd Airmen used a 10K all-terrain forklift to get the cargo loaded aboard.

Aerial port Airmen are perhaps most visible on the flight line when they're seen loading and unloading pallets using giant K-loader platforms. They're also responsible for inspecting cargo before it's put in place on aircraft.

"We're the mobility force -- as the mobility force we inspect airworthiness of the cargo with the deploying force, we also verify cargo configuration for the specific airframe that the cargo will be loaded on among other things," said TSgt. Peter Alicea-Correa, aircraft services supervisor. "The loadmaster is the final inspector and verifies air eligibility before the is the cargo is uploaded onto the aircraft. But we make sure to work out any errors or issues before the cargo arrives at the aircraft for loading."

Aerial porters with the Patriot Wing have been called upon for multiple deployments for more than a decade. They are among more than 200 deploying Airmen scheduled to head out to worldwide locations this summer. More than 250 Airmen are assigned to the 42nd and its sister squadron, the 58th APS.