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Vol. 47, No. 46 Thursday, November 14, 2019 New AI medical tech at MacDill - page 8 News/Features: page 3 Candy bomber remembers News/Features: page 3 Height no barrier Week in photos: page 4 Images from the week News/Features: page 11 Teamwork works Photo by Senior Airman Adam R. Shanks Community: page 14 Maj. Thomas Beachkofsky, 6th Healthcare Operations Squadron dermatologist, uses a body scanner microscope to take Events, Chapel, more... a picture of a spot on his arm at MacDill Air Force Base Oct. 30. A new software upgrade allows a complex algorithm to analyze an image captured with a camera and rate the severity of the spot for a dermatologist to review. MACDILL THUNDERBOLT u Thursday, November 14, 2019 u WWW.MACDILLTHUNDERBOLT.COM u 1 NEWS/FEATURES AMC announces 2019 Phoenix Spark Tank winners Air Mobility Command Public Affairs SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill.—The AMC Phoenix Spark Tank competition was held Oct. 25, at the Airlift/Tanker Association convention. There were 64 submissions for the competition and five finalists competed, making their pitch to the judges. Those finalists are: u First Place: Tech. Sgt. Sharif Abouomar, Air Mobility Command HQ A4 u Second Place: Tech. Sgt. Brett Kiser, 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing Runner ups: u Staff Sgt. Timothy Miller, 621st Contingency Response Wing u Master Sgt. Jacob Hamilton, 19th Airlift Wing u Senior Airman John Cuttito, 6th Air Mobility Wing Abouomar and Kiser will compete at the Air Force level to be considered as one of the finalists for the U.S. Air Force Spark Tank competition in February. The runner-ups will be considered for implementation by AMC. The additional 59 submissions have been forwarded into the API program for consideration to be implemented at various command levels. AMC is also opening an innovation campaign that will be available 365 days a year and can be accessed athttps://usaf.ideascalegov.com/. Photo by Senior Airman Christopher Quail Airmen can support this year’s winners by go- Staff. Sgt. Peter Cannizzaro, 9th Airlift Squadron loadmaster, uses a virtual reality headset to work ing to the site and vote for the semi-finalist. The on a brain as a demonstration of what you can do with VR at Dover Air Force Base, Del., Oct. 25. Air Force uses these votes to consider who will Working on a brain is one of many options Bedrock, a Phoenix Spark Tank development hub at Do- present at the Air Force Spark Tank level. ver AFB, is looking into for VR educational training. For information about base operations during emergencies or natural disasters, call the Straight Talk Line at 828-4163 COMMANDER’S ACTION LINE MacDill on the web Website: www.macdill.af.mil The Action Line provides two-way communication between the Facebook: www.facebook.com/ 6th Air Refueling Wing commander and the MacDill community. Per- sonnel may submit questions, concerns or comments via email to MacDillAirForceBase [email protected] or Facebook @6thARWCommandTeam Instagram: macdill_afb Twitter: @macdill_afb MacDill Thunderbolt U.S. government, the Department of Defense, the Department factor of the purchaser, user, or patron. of the Air Force or the 6th Air Refueling Wing. News items for the MacDill Thunderbolt can be submitted Publisher: Joe DeLuca The appearance of advertising in this publication, including to the 6th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs office, 8208 Hangar inserts or supplements, does not constitute endorsement by Loop Dr., suite 14, MacDill AFB, FL 33621. Call the Thunderbolt Editor: Nick Stubbs the Department of Defense, the Department of the Air Force, at 828-2215. Email: [email protected]. 6th Air Refueling Wing or the TImes Publishing Company of the Deadline for article submissions is noon, Wednesdays to The MacDill Thunderbolt is published by the Times Publish- products or service advertised. appear in the next week’s publication. Articles received after ing Company, a private firm in no way connected with the U.S. For retail advertising, call (813) 226-3318. deadline may be considered for future use. All submissions are Air Force. This commercial enterprise newspaper is an autho- Everything advertised in this publication shall be made considered for publication based on news value and timeliness. rized publication for distribution to members of the U.S. mili- available for purchase, use, or patronage without regard to Every article and photograph is edited for accuracy, clar- tary services on MacDill. Contents of the MacDill Thunderbolt race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, ity, brevity, conformance with the “Associated Press Stylebook are not necessarily the official views of, or endorsed by the physical handicap, political affiliation or any other non-merit and Libel Manual” and Air Force Instruction 35-101. 2 u WWW.MACDILLTHUNDERBOLT.COM u Thursday, November 14, 2019 u MACDILL THUNDERBOLT NEWS/FEATURES Chance encounter at A/TA reveals impact of Berlin ‘candy bomber’ by Col. Damien Pickart Air Mobility Command Public Affairs SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill.—As Air Force 1st Lt. Gail Halvorsen and his crewmates lobbed handkerchief-wrapped chocolate bars out the window of his C-54 Skymaster over a war-shattered Berlin, he had no way of knowing a chance encounter 71 years later would reveal the true impact of his actions to help those in need. As a special guest speaker and attendee at the 51st annual Airlift/Tanker Association Con- ference in Orlando, Fla., Oct. 23-26, Halvors- en shared his personal memories flying many of the Berlin Airlift’s 278,000 flights into the blockaded city between June 1948 and Septem- ber 1949, recounting how he - without permis- sion - started Operation Little Vittles, an effort to raise morale in Berlin by dropping candy via miniature parachutes to the city’s residents be- low. Among the hundreds of Air Mobility Com- Photo by Col. Damien Pickart mand Airmen who met and thanked Halvorsen Col. Gail Halvorsen, the Berlin Airlift “Candy Bomber,” greets Senior Airman Andreas Gehde, a for his contributions as a mobility legend, it was client systems technician from the 521st Air Mobility Operations Group, during the 2019 Airlift/ a very personal thank you from Senior Airman Tanker Association conference in Orlando, Fla., Oct. 24. During their conversation, Gehde related Andreas Gehde that caused the 99-year-old avi- to Halvorsen that his relief airdrops helped save the lives of his grandparents, who were trapped See CANDY, Page 6 without aid during the Soviet Blockade of Berlin in 1948-49. Aspiring Air Force pilots: Don’t let height standards get in the way by Jennifer Gonzalez Air Education and Training Command Public Affairs JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas (AFNS)—Those who aspire to one day become a U.S. Air Force aviator must first meet several requirements, including height, before they are considered for pilot training. For those who fall outside of the Air Force’s height require- ments, height waivers are available. “Don’t automatically assume you don’t qualify because of your height,” said Maj. Gen. Craig Wills, 19th Air Force commander. “We have an in- credibly thorough process for determining whether you can safely operate our assigned aircraft. Don’t let a number on a website stop you from pur- suing a career with the best Air Force in the world.” The current height requirement to become an Air Force pilot is a stand- ing height of 5 feet, 4 inches to 6 feet, 5 inches and a sitting height of 34- 40 inches. These standard height requirements have been used for years to ensure candidates will safely fit into an operational aircraft and each of the prerequisite training aircraft. “We’re rewriting these rules to better capture the fact that no two people are the exact same, even if they are the same overall height,” Wills said. Courtesy photo “Height restrictions are an operational limitation, not a medical one, Two instructor pilots from the 14th Flying Training Wing at Columbus but the majority of our aircraft can accommodate pilots from across the Air Force Base, Miss., stand side-by-side to illustrate the varying stand- height spectrum,” Wills said. “The bottom line is that the vast majority of ing heights of Air Force pilots to dispel the myth that there is one height See HEIGHT, Page 10 standard for all Air Force pilots. MACDILL THUNDERBOLT u Thursday, November 14, 2019 u WWW.MACDILLTHUNDERBOLT.COM u 3 WEEK IN PHOTOS Photo by Airman 1st Class Ryan C. Grossklag Aircrew prepare to unload an HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter assigned to the 305th Rescue Squadron, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., from a C-5 Super Galaxy assigned to the 512th Airlift Wing, Dover Air Force Base, Del., at MacDill Air Force Base Nov. 6. The helicopters and support equipment were delivered to MacDill as part of an upcoming exercise. Photo by Airman 1st Class Shannon Bowman Photo by Airman 1st Class Shannon Bowman U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Phillip Costine, a 63rd Air Refueling A B-52 Stratofortress from Barksdale Air Force Base, La., approaches a Squadron evaluator boom operator refuels a B-52 Stratofortress, Nov. KC-135 Stratotanker from MacDill AFB for refueling support Nov. 4. The 4. The KC-135 crew from MacDill Air Force Base delivered air refueling KC-135 delivers rapid global mobility and air refueling to extend the capa- support to bolster the global strike capabilities of the B-52 assigned to bilities for global strike and strategic deterrence missions. Barksdale AFB, La. 4 u WWW.MACDILLTHUNDERBOLT.COM u Thursday, November 14, 2019 u MACDILL THUNDERBOLT NEWS/FEATURES Air Force Academy names airfield in honor of Tuskegee hero by Jennifer Spradlin U.S.