Ramstein Airmen support joint airdrop exercise

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RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AFPN) --  Airmen flying a C-130 Hercules from the 37th Airlift Squadron here supported high altitude-low opening airdrop training exercise Aug. 2 near Banja Luka, Bosnia.  

Using the HALO technique, a jumper leaves an aircraft at a high altitude and free-falls to a much lower altitude before opening his or her parachute.

The jump included 13 U.S. jumpers from Ramstein, Royal Air Force Lakenheath and Stuttgart Air Base, and three Bosnian jumpers. Also along to observe the C-130 flight was Zeljko Kosmic, president of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Gen. Sifet Podzic, commander of Bosnia and Herzegovina troops.

The C-130 crew included Capt. McArthur Hoglund, Capt. Jim Knaack, 1st Lt. Frank Laras, Tech. Sgt. James Pendergast, Tech. Sgt. Mike Oliver, Tech. Sgt. Jacade Hanson, Tech. Sgt. Paul Harris, Senior Airman Tim Parritt and Airman 1st Class Keith Jones.

"Everyone involved did an outstanding job," said U.S. Ambassador Douglas McElhaney," who observed the flight from the ground. 

The training event highlighted the cooperation between the U.S. and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Not only did our aircrew members receive training in a foreign airfield and drop zone and a different geographic environment, we had the opportunity to accomplish interoperability training with Bosnia and Herzegovina's military," said Maj. Mark August, 37th AS director of operations.

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