27 APS takes trophy in Roundup Published April 28, 2009 By Staff Sgt. Michael Edmond 934th Airlift Wing Public Affairs Minneapolis, St. Paul -- The 27th Aerial Port Squadron edged out 17 Reserve AP squadrons to win the inaugural 22nd Air Force AP Roundup held March 13-15 at Dobbins AFB, Ga. On its way to taking home a bucking bronco trophy, the 27 APS placed in the top three in all but two of the six challenges used to determine the most proficient unit. They took first in the in-transit visibility event. "Every team that went down there worked hard," said. Tech. Sgt. Matt Russell, the 27 APS team leader. "One of the things that made us stand out was that we did everything as a team." They practiced together as well as performed their regular Reserve training as a team, and at the competition they made sure all their uniform combinations matched. This team-mindedness led to their team having great cohesion, said Sergeant Russell. "I'm really proud of my team for doing as well as we did," he said. The Roundup competition consists of six events, four directly related to the aerial port job. The engine running on-load/offload challenge was the most intense event. "The props are spinning and the wind is blowing, and we had to load the C-130 as quickly, efficiently and safely as possible," said Staff Sgt. Justin Melroy, one of the team members. Even though chains on board seemed to be flying out of control and people and cargo were moving all around, each person acted as a cog in a machine and the event went smoothly, said Sergeant Russell. "Everyone had a role and a job and they worked together to perfection," he said. The second event is ITV, which tests a team member's ability to take a given scenario and come up with a solution. The material handling equipment event pushed the team's ability to maneuver the large 25K Halverson through a course and then load and off load cargo. The final job-specific challenge tested the team's proficiency at certifying and inspecting cargo set for air shipment. The competition finished off with a fit to fight challenge followed by an Airman's Manual trivia contest. Although the ROUNDUP is a training opportunity, it also serves to enhance esprit de corps as well as knowledge-sharing. "I think the competition did what it was supposed to," said Sergeant Melroy. "It was interesting seeing familiar faces from previous deployments, and I learned a lot from the other teams." Although Sergeants Russell and Melroy both said they'd do it again, the rules don't allow previous team members to compete in future ROUNDUPs. That doesn't mean they are unable to participate. "We've already started putting together another team and are excited about training them and passing on the knowledge we learned," said Sergeant Russell.