A trip to the desert is nothing new for the 463rd Airlift Group here. On Jan. 20, 24 Airmen and two C-130 Hercules stepped up to deliver "beans and bullets" to the warfighter for more than 120 days.

The experienced crew understands that airlift is important for reducing convoy operations in Southwest Asia.

"We know it is dangerous but each time we load up one C-130, that is one less convoy that will be put in harm's way," said Staff Sgt. Paul Rose, a 61st Airlift Squadron loadmaster.

On Jan.18 alone, Air Force C-130 Hercules and C-17 Globemaster IIIs flew approximately 170 airlift sorties. According to U.S. Central Command officials, more than 230 tons of cargo was delivered and nearly 3,500 passengers transported in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa.

The high number of missions and deployments in the C-130s can be hard on some of the crews but the Airmen work well together.

"The best part of the C-130 is the people," said Capt. Mark Yarian, a pilot with the 61st Airlift Squadron. "You will never find a better group of people to work with."

This crew's trip to Southwest Asia is a three-day flight with a stop in Canada, the United Kingdom and Italy before flying into the war zone. The Airmen spend the time preparing themselves mentally and getting to know the crews they will work with during the deployment.

On one of the C-130s, 11 Airmen from the 463rd AG have racked up 54 trips to Southwest Asia. For Master Sgt. Kenneth Gilbertson, a 61st AS flight engineer, this will be his eighth deployment to Southwest Asia.

"The crew really looks up to Sergeant Gilbertson. There is really not much that he has not seen or done," said Capt. Stuart Rubio, aircraft commander with the 61st.