JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, South Carolina -- Hidden among the salt marshes of Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, a scourge of mosquitoes wait each day, just out of reach, for the red rays of sunset to signal their hunt for blood among the base’s populace and the surrounding community.
In response, the 910th Airlift Wing dispatched an aerial spray-modified C-130H Hercules aircraft to hunt the insider threats feeding and breeding within the gates from Sept. 8–12, 2025, treating approximately 17,000 acres of remote habitat at the Naval Weapons Station, JBC, with Environmental Protection Agency-approved pesticide.
“We want to make sure our service members are able to focus on their tasks at hand and are not being distracted by the burden of getting eaten alive,” said Capt. Ben McMillan, a medical entomologist with the 757th Airlift Squadron, “which is why we try to hit the hot spots where mosquitoes are likely to be concentrated so that when they venture out, their numbers are reduced.”
Based out of Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio, the 910th AW maintains the Department of Defense’s only large-area fixed-wing aerial spray capability to control disease-carrying insects and pest insects. The unit provides the Airpower necessary to bring the fight straight to high-activity areas that would normally be a mosquito's haven, away from conventional pesticide application.
“The aerial spray mission is very beneficial to Joint Base Charleston because it covers an area of marsh we can’t easily access by our four-wheel or ground vehicles,” said Staff Sgt. Henry Kincaid, the non-commissioned officer in charge of pest management at Joint Base Charleston. “Don’t get me wrong, us buying a hovercraft would be cool, but it’s hard to justify when the 910th saves us a lot of time and product without having to purchase expensive specialized equipment to treat the hard-to-reach areas.”
Aerial spray qualified air crews have the capability to fly over such areas using night vision goggles, targeting not only vast swaths of mosquito habitat quickly via aircraft but also hitting targets at peak activity times, increasing the efficiency and lethality of the mission.
“This really allows us to be a unique tool for the Joint Force to combat mosquito populations that would be difficult to eliminate using other technologies,” said McMillan. “We do the job that in theory nobody else can do.”
Dogfighting the aerial combatants through the setting of the light, aerial spray helps stifle the swarms' tangible negative effects on quality of life that, if left unchecked, could impact the mission of the 60 DoD and Federal agencies on the joint base.
“Mosquitoes don’t differentiate, discriminate or judge based on the color or pattern of the uniform; if you have blood, they want it,” said Kincaid. “And some of the hazards of mosquitoes are West Nile, dengue, Zika and malaria, all of which could put a lot of our service members out of commission, hindering the mission and the amount of time it takes us to get our aircraft, ships or subs out the door.”
Mosquitoes are annoying and potentially dangerous. Aerial spray directly benefits the health and wellness of not only the Airmen, Sailors, Marines, Soldiers, Coast Guardsmen, federal agents, government employees and government contractors on JBC but the surrounding community as well.
USAF. (U.S. Air Force Graphic by Rosario "Charo" Gutierrez)