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U.S. aircrews build relationships with Pakistan air force

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Kali L. Gradishar
  • U.S. Air Forces Central Combat Camera Team
CHAKLALA AIR FORCE BASE, Pakistan --  Four Air Force Reserve C-130 Hercules aircrews from the 357th Airlift Squadron at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., are building relationships with their Pakistani counterparts as they bring relief supplies to the flood-ravaged nation.

The aircrews, support Airmen and two aircraft forward deployed from the 746th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, Aug. 16 as the Air Force resumed humanitarian operations into Pakistan.

"We heard there was flooding, but we didn't know the magnitude of it. The amount of flooding is hard to explain in words," said Lt. Col. Steve Catchings, an Air Force Reserve C-130 pilot who's flown almost 6,000 hours in the aircraft. "You see towns where water is halfway up the buildings. You see people living on roofs. You see livestock floating on water. Their farms are just completely flooded. The roads have disappeared."

Colonel Catchings is an 18-year veteran C-130 pilot with more than 6,000 flying hours in the transport aircraft.

He said the level of devastation was unimaginable. Video cameras alone don't tell the story.

"The crew got real quiet the first time we saw it, when we got below the clouds and we could see," he said. "That (image) definitely told us why we were here."

As the crews got further into the country and more involved in the humanitarian missions, subsequent impressions showed a nation's government and military working diligently with international counterparts in their own efforts to transport food, water and supplies to people in need.

The Pakistan air force has "been doing some of the same types of things that we have done - picking up a load from Islamabad and bringing it to different locations," said 1st Lt. Tim Dixon, an Air Force Reserve C-130 navigator on his first deployment. "They're well capable, they're great Airmen, and they're doing a great job."

"Really it's their show and we're just working with them doing whatever we can to help," said Colonel Catchings. "They're doing a lot of the airlift, too. They've got airplanes on the ground... We're taking a lot of the stuff from Islamabad to the staging areas and then they're taking it from there on down to some of the other areas. And a lot of this stuff goes on to their helicopters to take it on down to the areas that airplanes can't get in to."

Pakistan and American C-130 aircrews dedicated to flood relief have taken great interest in each other, comparing aircraft and trading flight patches to show camaraderie and gratitude. They've also gone to great lengths to show their appreciation for aid the U.S. military is providing.

"They're C-130 folks, too, so they can relate to us," said Colonel Catchings, a native of Navarre, Fla. "We've been showing each other each other's airplanes. They help us (offload cargo), and they're also taking care of our customs and our flight plans and all of the other administrative stuff we need to get in and get out.

"There's always someone to come out and greet the airplane... and because we've been here so many times we're on a first name basis with them," he said." Today, the base commander came out and brought us tea, juice and cookies. They're very thankful that we're here."