Senior Afghan commander's visit supports AMC role in building partnerships

  • Published
  • By Mark D. Diamond
  • Air Mobility Command Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) --  The commander of the Afghan National Army Air Corps visited Scott Air Force Base July 15 as part of a U.S. visit that included stops at several Air Force installations, as well as the National Capital Region.

According to Air Mobility Command officials, the visit from Maj. Gen. Mohammad Dawran, the senior officer in charge of the Afghan air forces, supports the command's role in building and sustaining partner nation capacity.

AMC officials added that training, fighting and sharing ideas and lessons learned with joint and coalition partners has often been the key to operational success.

General Dawran said his visit to Scott AFB provided good insight into air mobility operations and he looks forward to using the information to improve the air corps' support to the Afghan government and its citizens.

"Humanitarian assistance and mobility are core Afghan air corps mission areas of responsibility," said the general. "It was a pleasure to visit Scott AFB as it provided a unique vantage point and insight into command and control of air assets, as well as how the U.S. supports the humanitarian and other important mission sets from a logistics and mobility perspective. I look forward to being able to take this information back to Afghanistan and improve our support to the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and our citizens."

While at Scott AFB, General Dawran received an AMC command briefing, followed by briefings and tours of the 618th Tanker Airlift Control Center; U.S. Transportation Command; the Deployment and Distribution Operations Center; and the Air Force Reserve Command's 932nd Airlift Wing. General Dawran's visit here concluded with the Aeromedical Staging Facility, which included a tour of an aeromedically-configured C-130 Hercules.

During General Dawran's AMC headquarters visit, he was accompanied by Gen. Arthur J. Lichte, AMC commander, as well as members of the Afghan and U.S. delegations, including Brig. Gen. Walter Givhan, Combined Air Power Transition Force commanding general and 438th Air Expeditionary Wing commander; and Lt. Col. Chris Fuller, the CAPTF director of operations.

"It was a pleasure meeting with the senior leader in charge of Afghanistan's air corps," said General Lichte. "The air corps is an excellent example of success in rebuilding Afghanistan's security forces and a symbol of the progress in that country. During my recent visit to his country of Afghanistan, I was able to see first-hand the advances we are collectively making at places our mobility aircraft operate. We were able to compare notes and continue to make progress in partnering with them."

From Scott AFB, General Dawran made visits to the Pentagon; Andrews AFB, Md.; the U.S. Expeditionary Center at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J.; Camp Bullis and Randolph and Lackland AFBs in Texas; Creech and Nellis AFBs in Nevada; and McChord AFB, Wash.

Lt. Col. Dave Polacheck, from the AMC International Programs office, said the purpose of General Dawran's visit here was to continue an open dialog between senior military leaders of the two countries and to reinforce airlift concepts that are being applied throughout Afghanistan.

"All presenters did an excellent job by tailoring their content to issues and challenges present in Afghanistan today," Colonel Polacheck said. Furthermore, he said the C-130 tour "was an excellent example of our Total Force Integration concept put into action" with an active duty aeromedical crew working hand in hand with an Air Force Reserve C-130 aircrew.

According to officials with the Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan, the Afghan air corps now is capable of providing a growing medical evacuation capability, moving patients from the battlefield and forward from regional hospitals directly to the National Military Hospital in Kabul.

Furthermore, according to a CSTC-A official, the Afghan air corps is contributing significantly to the fight in Afghanistan.

In June, Afghan air corps aircrews flew 665 sorties, transporting more than 8,640 passengers and about 130,000 pounds of cargo. In October 2008, they had a record month, transporting 9,337 Afghan National Army and police personnel. Additionally, in August, they had another record month delivering 190,000 pounds of cargo. According to CSTC-A sources, ANAAC airmen completed their first presidential Mi-17 helicopter mission on Oct. 28.

During his whirlwind tour of U.S. military installations, including three AMC bases and numerous briefings highlighting airlift, air refueling and aeromedical evacuation, the senior Afghan air corps officer got an up-close and personal look at what air mobility brings to the fight.