Project Handclasp

Tech. Sgt. Sarai Goldsberry (right), 709th Airlift Squadron loadmaster, guides a pallet of cargo onto a C-5 aircraft April 13, 2012, at Oceana Naval Air Station, Va., with the assistance of Master Sgt. Charles Groce, also assigned to the 709th AS . The all Reserve aircrew from Dover Air Force Base, Del., supported the U.S. Navy's Project Handclasp humanitarian mission by hauling more than 110,000 pounds of cargo to Naval Station Rota, Spain. (U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. Lucious Washington)

Project Handclasp

Staff Sgt. Brandon Ward (left) and Master Sgt. Scott O'Brien, two 709th Airlift Squadron loadmasters assigned to Dover Air Force Base, Del., guide a forklift driver in loading a pallet onto a C-5 April 13, 2012, at Oceana Naval Air Station, Va., in support of the U.S. Navy's Project Handclasp. The all-Reserve aircrew loaded 34 pallets totalling more than 110,000 pounds of goods ranging from medical supplies to educational material for delivery to Naval Station Rota, Spain, where it would be further delivered to seven countries in Africa providing humanitarian assistance. (U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. William Adkins)

Project Handclasp

Master Sgt. Scott O'Brien (left), and Staff Sgt. Brandon Ward, two 709th Airlift Squadron loadmasters assigned to Dover Air Force Base, Del., load a pallet of cargo onto a C-5 April 13, 2012, in support of the U.S. Navy's Project Handclasp. A 19-member all-Reserve aircrew hauled 34 pallets totalling more than 110,000 pounds of goods, ranging from medical supplies to educational material, to Naval Station Rota, Spain, where it would be further delivered to seven countries in Africa as part of the Navy's humanitarian assistance program. (U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. William Adkins)

Air Force Reserve C-5 crew supports Navy's Project Handclasp

Published April 16, 2012
By Master Sgt. Veronica Aceveda
512th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. -- Nineteen reservists from the 709th Airlift Squadron returned April 15 following a 3-day mission to Naval Station Rota, Spain, in support of Project Handclasp.

In operation since 1962, PH distributes donated humanitarian, educational and goodwill material to disadvantaged people in foreign countries.

It was a joint effort with the Air Force Reserve that made the delivery of more than 110,000 pounds of cargo possible.

The all-Reserve aircrew flew to Oceana Naval Air Station, Va., where they loaded 34 pallets, almost filling the C-5's maximum pallet capacity of 36.

"It certainly was a lot of cargo," said Senior Airman Guy Martin Jr., a new loadmaster who logged his first humanitarian mission. "The cargo was securely packaged, double wrapped and stacked for maximum transportation."

While the Dover-based aircrew unloaded the pallets at one location in Spain, the impact of that mission will span seven African countries in need of humanitarian assistance.

Some of the hauled humanitarian items included medical supplies and wheelchairs intended for delivery to South Africa and Mozambique. Goodwill items airlifted overseas included soccer equipment and stuffed animals routed for Kenya, Ghana and Djibouti. Educational materials, in the form of books, were bound for Tanzania.

"To be a part of something that will benefit an array of different countries, economies and families is both touching and humbling," said Martin. "It provokes a feeling that can't be easily matched or duplicated."

This airlift across the Atlantic Ocean also contained the non-profit organization's most requested item - 165 water filters, said U.S. Navy Cmdr. James Massello, Project Handclasp.

"These water filters have a huge impact in the communities where they are employed," said Massello. "Each filter provides an institution or home with safe water for more than 10 years. And, we could not have executed this humanitarian mission without (the Air Force Reserve's) help."