934th mission to Africa provides training, Airmen pitch in to help community

  • Published
  • By Capt. Brandon Schrader
  • 96th Airlift Squadron
SENEGAL, AFRICA --  On June 14, 15 Airmen from the 934th Airlift Wing departed Minneapolis for a trip not knowing what to expect or what they would be involved in. They did not know the impact they would leave after departing Senegal on June 27.

Air Force Reserve Command units are typically not tasked with supporting exercises in Africa as these missions typically go to the Air National Guard through the state partnership program. With no ANG volunteers to participate, it was opened up to AFRC units. The 934th AW immediately seized the opportunity and it provided some rare training for all involved. A majority of those involved had not been to or flown in Africa. Immediately upon arriving in Senegal, the 934th started to make an impact. The first week of the exercise 934th members were tasked to support African Partnership Flight by using the aircraft as a static training platform. African Partnership Flight is a program run by USAFE-AFAFRICA to provide outreach and training to members of African air forces.

Classroom instruction included aeromedical evacuation, loadmaster skills, flight safety, mission planning, airfield security, and fixed/rotor-wing accident investigation. Members of the 96th Airlift Squadron, 934th Operations Support Squadron and the 934th MXS supported African Partnership Flights training objectives by demonstrating, with the assistance of ANG advisors and French interpreters, winching, pallet on/off-load, and shoring procedures. The aircraft was also used by aeromedical evacuation to practice loading and unloading patients, demonstrate in-flight patient care and the capabilities of the C-130 as a medical transport.

Senior Master Sgt. Dean Grothem, Senior Airmen Shawn Huus-McKevitt and Brian Beckman were stars in the eyes of the loadmaster students. The knowledge they possessed and passed on during the loadmaster demonstrations provided new methods and considerations to loading their airplanes and helicopters. Beckman had a special connection with one of the students. That student was a Nigerian Air Force C-130 loadmaster who was a classmate of his at Little Rock AFB during initial loadmaster training.

During the second week 934th members supported a key scenario in the Western Accord exercise by validating an Economic Community Of Western African States (ECOWAS) objective by deploying and redeploying a multi-national African/US force to a forward deployment location.

After first arriving in Senegal, a few members of the group wanted to find a way to give something to the children. Tech. Sgt. Benjamin Rettman reflected on his motivation to assist, "I think our first night here in Dakar really struck a nerve with us. We were not really prepared to see what we saw on our trips through the town from the air base to the hotel." Grothem and Rettman wanted to find a way to help. Both, with the assistance of the US Embassy, searched for various groups/orphanages/food shelters where they could provide a little assistance.

When they identified a cause and an organization to support, they sought the financial support of all willing members of the trip. All fifteen members donated a single day's per diem to an organization that was able to help. The organization provides food and shelter to abandoned youth by providing a family structure, a bed, three meals a day, and elementary through high school education. With the combined donation of $2000, the financial donation provided food, shelter and education for all 150 students for twelve days. "We were told by the staff that they will remember the day we came for years to come and so will I. I am very glad to be able to help those kids," said Rettman.

All members returned home with a different impression of Africa than what they imagined when they left. "We made a difference in a part of the world where they don't value statistics or deadlines, but rather relationships and trust," said Rettman. With all the training that was accomplished, the most important objective was building relationships and gaining trust with airmen from West Africa. Those objectives are for more important and more intangible than what we can measure on paper.