Red Horse Airmen deploy to Thailand Published Jan. 5, 2005 By Tech. Sgt. Steve Horton 51st Fighter Wing Public Affairs OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea (AFPN) -- Airmen from here packed up and are heading to Utapao, Thailand, to assist in the region devastated by tsunamis Dec. 26.The 24 Airmen of the 554th Red Horse Squadron will conduct airfield assessments for the Department of Defense’s combined joint task force to determine the usability of runways for relief supplies.Once they arrive in Utapao, they will split into two teams of 12. One team will travel to Sri Lanka and the other to Indonesia. Each team currently has six airfields to evaluate, but more could be added, officials said.“When we get there, we will assess the infrastructure of the airfield to see if aircraft can land safely to bring in the relief supplies,” said Capt. John Volcheck, the squadron’s chief engineer and advance team commander. He said each team is self-sufficient and will conduct pavement evaluations and check the power grid and plumbing capabilities. “We can fix plumbing problems and help produce potable water if that’s what they need us to do,” Captain Volcheck said. “We also (pour) concrete. Just give us the concrete, and we can build a runway. It will be up to the joint task force commander to use us however he needs to.”Once squadron officials were notified of the deployment, it was not hard to find volunteers, said Capt. Chris Eyle, 554th RHS project engineer. “When our commander asked for volunteers, everyone in the room volunteered. We’re all very excited to be going.”The group is scheduled to deploy for more than a month, but is prepared to stay until the job is complete, officials said.“Our guys are chomping at the bit to (get) there and do their job,” Captain Volcheck said. “It’s not often that you get to do your job, help people and show everyone the positive capabilities of the military.”