Mobility officials adapt to volcanic ash plume Published April 22, 2010 By Christen N. McCluney Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Air Mobility Command members continue to provide airlift capabilities despite the cloud of ash from an Icelandic volcano that has troubled air travel, a senior officer responsible for moving military personnel and equipment around the world said April 21 here. "As soon as we saw the potential impact from the volcanic ash cloud forming, we initiated some discussion about possible consequences and courses of action," said Brig. Gen. Randy A. Kee, the vice commander of the 618th Tanker Airlift Control Center here. "This planning turned into reality in a matter of a couple of hours," he said. Since rerouting of air traffic became necessary, the command has flown enough people to fill Madison Square Garden and the equivalent of 175 fully loaded semi trucks of cargo, General Kee said. "It's very impressive to see how folks were able to reposition," General Kee said. "All the people that made this happen are heroes to me. This shows some agility that is exceptional. It's an honor to serve in this great cause." Members of the control center provide centralized global command and control of both Air Force and commercial contract aircraft that fulfill the nation's military airlift requirements. These requirements involve planning, scheduling and tracking airlift, air refueling and aeromedical evacuation missions, and then tasking those missions to units and providing command and control. Missions the center oversees range from delivering mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles, transporting warfighters and providing humanitarian aid in the wake of disaster, General Kee said. Since the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano April 16, nearly 400 airlift missions controlled by the center have been rerouted due to the ash cloud that closed much of the airspace over Europe. "In the wake of disaster, the team has the ability to reroute or cancel flights to ensure the safety of passengers and cargo the planes are carrying," General Kee said. Because volcanic ash is easily ingested by engines and can cause them to fail, pilots don't fly through ash clouds. In the early moments of the eruption, the Tanker Airlift Control Center staff took action to move aircraft, crews and maintenance personnel from Ramstein and Spangdahlem air bases in Germany to staging locations in Spain. This flexibility, General Kee said, has allowed those assets to remain in the rotation of aircraft moving troops and cargo to support operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The volcanic ash plume also forced a change in standard aeromedical evacuation operations, including the flight routing that AMC members use to move wounded warriors from the U.S. Central Command area to further care. "Under normal circumstances, the majority of military patients evacuated from Iraq and Afghanistan move to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center (in Germany) for care," the general said. "Currently, missions are flying to Naval Air Station Rota (in Spain), where they refuel and then bring the patients back to the United States for care." When flight routes will go back to normal, he said, depends on the volcano. Officials at the control center are assessing day by day and don't plan to return to normal routes until they can do so permanently. "We are watching this carefully," General Kee said.