Dyess Hercs contribute to AMC's million sorties flown since 9/11

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  • By Air Mobility Command Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  Air Mobility Command passed a major milestone Nov. 19, when an AMC aircraft flew the command's one millionth sortie since Sept. 11, 2001.

The landmark flight was a C-17 mission flown to Manas Air Base, Kyrgyzstan. The crew was from the 62nd Airlift Wing's 10th Airlift Squadron, McChord AFB, Wash. 

To date, Dyess' 317th Airlift Group, a tenant  unit of the 7th Bomb Wing and the Air Mobility Command's busiest C-130 unit, has contributed more than 36,217 sorties to that big number just by flying in Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom.

Capt. Russell Anderson, 317th AG current operations scheduler, said the group has flown countless more sorties in support of other deployments as well.

"AMC is firmly in the fight," said Gen. Arthur Lichte, AMC commander. "Whether it's flying airlift, tanker or aeromedical missions in and out of combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, humanitarian relief missions to hurricane and earthquake ravaged areas, or supporting UN peacekeeping missions as it did recently in Darfur, AMC is there."

"This milestone is a tribute to the men and women who fly, maintain, support and control these aircraft. The excellence they demonstrate every day will no doubt continue for the next million missions, wherever they may be," said Lichte. 

Col. Kevin Jackson, 317th AG commander, thanked the men and women of the "fighting 3-1-7" for their selfless service in support of this great nation. 

"Since assuming command of the fightin' 317th Airlift Group in January 2006, nearly a quarter of this organization, more than 300 warriors, has been deployed in support of Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom as well as Joint Task Force Horn of Africa," the Colonel said. "In fact, since December 2003 ... the 317th AG has been continuously deployed in excess of 1445 days."

In so doing, he said, the maintainers, operators and mission supporters of the 317th AG have provided humanitarian relief to Kenya and Ethiopia, saving hundreds of thousands of lives; delivered thousands of tons of materiel to the Army and Marine forces on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan; returned hundreds of fallen service members, delivering them to their families with the honor they deserve; and moved hundreds of wounded soldiers out of harms way and delivered them to the medical care they needed in order survive.

"The bottom line is, this is only the tip of the iceberg!" Colonel Jackson said. "No matter the task or the theater of operation, the fightin' 3-1-7 has been a critical player in the attainment of this astounding Air Mobility Command milestone and will continue to be for 'the next million AMC sorties.'"

A sortie is defined as a single takeoff and landing. The milestone includes all operational missions, training missions and commercial contract missions flown by the command.

Other mobility facts:

- About every 90 seconds a mobility aircraft lifts off somewhere in the world.

- Since Sept. 11, 2001, AMC tankers have passed nearly 1.2 billion gallons of fuel to U.S. and allied aircraft.

- AMC airlift is keeping about 12,000 people and almost 5,000 trucks off Iraqi roads each month, helping to defeat the enemy's IED strategy.

- AMC aircraft are responsible for transporting the nation's senior leaders, including the president.

- AMC is rushing about 12 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles to Iraq and Afghanistan every day. The command has delivered more than 1,000 MRAPs.

- AMC aeromedical crews provide timely airlift and medical care to their fellow warriors, rapidly moving injured service members from the battlefield to the U.S.

* Senior Airman Carolyn Viss, 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs, contributed to this article.