AEG drops fire retardant on Corral fire

Slurry pours from the back of a C-130 Hercules aircraft June 28 after dropping a load of fire retardant on the Corral fire located more than 180 miles north of Sacramento, Calif. As of 6:30 p.m. June 28, aircrews had seven missions against the fire, dropping 21,000 gallons of fire retardant. The 302nd AEG is made up of two Air National Guard units, including the 153rd AW, from Cheyenne, Wyo., and the 145th AW, Charlotte, N.C. One Air Force Reserve unit, the 302nd AW from Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., is the only Air Force Reserve unit in the 302nd AEG. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Master Sgt. Dennis Martin)

Reserve C-130s called in to fight California wildfires

Two Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System configured C-130s from the Air Force Reserve's 302nd Airlift Wing, Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., are being dispatched to California to help fight wildfires there. In 2007 the 302nd AW flew 76 sorties against fires in Southern California discharging more than 200,000 gallons of retardant protecting more than 2,000 homes, saving thousands of lives and preventing an estimated $1.1 billion in property loss. (U.S. Air Force photo/ Capt. Jody L. Ritchie)

Total Force partners with Soldiers in Operation Toy Drop

Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg, N.C. -- An Air Force Reserve C-130 flown by 95th Airlift Squadron crews drops paratroopers during Operation Toy Drop. The exercise included jumpmasters from Canada, Chile and Ireland, and active duty and Reserve paratroopers and Airmen from the U.S. More than 1,050 paratroopers jumped during the exercise. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Susan Parent)

Total Force partners with Soldiers in Operation Toy Drop

Fifty paratroopers walk to a C-130 with engines running during Operation Toy Drop. The 440th Airlift Wing, Air Force Reserve, supported the combined joint exercise with C-130 airlift. More than 1,050 paratroopers jumped during the exercise held at the Sicily Drop Zone at Fort Bragg, N.C. (U.S. Air Force photo/Lt. Col. Ann Peru Knabe)

Where's the fire?

July - Sep 2000 -- Air Force Reserve firefighting aircraft and aircrews quenched wildfires in California, Idaho and Montana, flying C-130s equipped with Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems. Here, an Air Force Reserve C-130 Hercules MAFFS aircraft assigned to the 302nd Airlift Wing, Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., drops fire retardant chemicals on the "Big Crow" wildfire in southwestern Idaho. The 302nd, along with the 146th AW, California Air National Guard, deployed to Boise, Id., to contain wildfires there before they could become major fires. The 302nd again fought wildfires in California in 2007.

Smoke from Poomacha Fire

Heavy smoke hangs in the air as the Poomacha Fire in northern San Diego County, Calif., continues to burn on Oct. 26, 2007. Crews on six specially equipped Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft are supporting firefighting efforts by strategically releasing fire retardant in the area. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Roy A. Santana)

C-130 Transformation

Col. Merle D. Hart, 440th Airlift Wing commander, is a master navigator with more than 5,500 flying hours to his credit. He has flown in many major worldwide contingencies during the past two decades and has served in a variety of enlisted and officer positions throughout his active duty and Air Force Reserve career. (U.S. Air Force photo)

C-130 transformation

Staff Sgt. Alan Hunter works to secure the landing gear doors on a 440th Airlift Wing C-130H Hercules on the Blue Ramp at Pope Air Force Base, N.C., after receiving a high-wind warning. Sergeant Hunter is a former member of the 43rd Airlift Wing, the Regular Air Force?s host unit at Pope AFB. He is the second active-duty Airman to join the 440th Maintenance Group. He was stationed at Pope AFB for six years before joining the Air Force Reserve. (U.S. Air Force photo)

Farewell Flying Badgers

(From left) Maj. Gen. Martin M. Mazick, 22nd Air Force commander; Col. Merle D. Hart 440th Airlift Wing commander; and Col. Timothy Zadalis, 43rd AW commander, salute during the playing of the National Anthem at the 440th AW?s relocation ceremony at Pope Air Force Base, N.C., June 10, 2007. (U.S. Air Force photo/Joe Oliva)

Farewell Flying Badgers

(From left) Col. Merle D. Hart, 440th Airlift Wing commander; Col. Timothy Zadalis, 43rd AW commander; and Chief Master Sgt. Carmon Francher, 440th AW command chief master sergeant, follow Maj. Gen. Martin M. Mazick, 22nd Air Force commander, to the 440th AW?s relocation ceremony upon landing at Pope Air Force Base, N.C. on June 10, 2007. (U.S. Air Force photo/Joe Oliva)

Farewell Flying Badgers

Col. Merle D. Hart, 440th Airlift Wing commander, stands with Chief Master Sgt. Carmon Francher, wing command chief master sergeant, during the unit's relocation ceremony June 9, 2007, at Gen. Mitchell International Airport Air Reserve Station in Milwaukee. The motto on the wing flag is Nunquam Non Paratus ? ?Never unprepared." (U.S. Air Force photo/Joe Oliva)

Hurricane Season Arrives

The Citizen Airmen of the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron "Hurricane Hunters" mark the start of the hurricane season on June 1 by keeping an eye on disturbances in the Pacific and Caribbean. The Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters, the only operational hurricane reconnaissance squadron in the world, started early this year when they flew Subtropical Storm Andrea in early May. The National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration predicts 13 to 17 named storms with seven to 10 becoming hurricanes. This season, the state-of-the-art WC-130J will be equipped with the Stepped-Frequency Microwave Radiometer, which continuously measures surface winds and rainfall rates occurring below the aircraft. The data collected by the Hurricane Hunters increase the accuracy of the National Hurricane Center Forecast up to 30 percent. (Air Force Photo/ Tech. Sgt. James Pritchett)