AIRLIFT/TANKER QUARTERLY Volume 21 • Number 1 • Winter 2013 Before, During and After Sandy Air Mobility Forces Support Superstorm Sandy Relief Efforts Pages 8-13 In Review: 44th Annual A/TA Convention and the 2012 AMC and A/TA Air Mobility Symposium & Technology Exposition Pages 16-17 CONTENTS… Association News Chairman’s Comments ........................................................................2 President’s Message ...............................................................................3 Secretary’s Notes ...................................................................................3 Association Round-Up ..........................................................................4 AIRLIFT/TANKER QUARTERLY Volume 21 • Number 1 • Winter 2013 Cover Story Airlift/Tanker Quarterly is published four times a year by the Airlift/Tanker Association, Before, During and After Sandy 9312 Convento Terrace, Fairfax, Virginia 22031. Postage paid at Belleville, Illinois. Air Mobility Forces Support Superstorm Sandy Relief Efforts ...8-13 Subscription rate: $40.00 per year. Change of address requires four weeks notice. The Airlift/Tanker Association is a non-profit Features professional organization dedicated to providing a forum for people interested in improving the capability of U.S. air mobility forces. Membership CHANGES AT THE TOP in the Airlift/Tanker Association is $40 annually or $110 for three years. Full-time student Air Mobility Command and membership is $15 per year. Life membership is 18th Air Force Get New Commanders ..........................................6-7 $500. Industry Partner membership includes five individual memberships and is $1500 per year. Membership dues include a subscription to Airlift/ An Interview with Lt Gen Darren McDew, 18AF/CC ...............14-15 Tanker Quarterly, and are subject to change. by Colonel Greg Cook, USAF (Ret) Airlift/Tanker Quarterly is published for the use of subscribers, officers, advisors and members of the Airlift/Tanker Association. The appearance of articles or advertisements, In Review: including inserts, in Airlift/Tanker Quarterly 44th Annual A/TA Convention and the does not constitute an endorsement by the Airlift/Tanker Association, the Air Mobility 2012 AMC and A/TA Air Mobility Symposium Command, the Department of the Air Force or the Department of Defense, of the viewpoints, & Technology Exposition ............................................................. 16-17 products or services mentioned or advertised. ©2013. Articles appearing in this publication may not be reprinted, in any form, without prior written approval from the Airlift/Tanker Departments Association. Airlift/Tanker Quarterly is quarterly news cycle- Industry Partner Spotlight: PhxMesa Gateway Airport ........................22 dependent and is distributed as follows: Winter: January / February / March; Spring: April / May Industry Partner Highlights ...............................................................23 / June; Summer: July / August / September; Fall: October / November / December [actual distribution Association Contacts ..........................................................................24 dates vary]. The copy deadline for submitted stories, articles, letters, etc., is as follows: Winter: December 30th; Spring: March 30th; Summer: June 30th; Fall [Convention Edition]: August 30th. Airlift/Tanker Quarterly accepts advertising for the inside front and back covers for the Winter, Spring and Summer Editions; and for throughout the Fall Convention Edition. EDITORIAL STAFF: A/TQ Awarded Gen. Walt Kross, USAF, Retired 2012 APEX Chairman, Board of Officers Award of Excellence. Mr. Collin R. Bakse Seven in a Row! Editor and Art Director Mr. Doug Lynch Business Manager Col. Ronald E. Owens, USAF Retired Editorial Advisor Col. Gregory Cook, USAF Retired On the Cover: A WC-130J Hercules, from the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, flies Editorial Contributor/Public Affairs Coordinator into Hurricane Sandy on 29 October 2012 somewhere over the Eastern coastline of the U.S. The 53rd WRS conducted weather reconnaissance missions in preparation for Hurricane Sandy making landfall along the Eastern coastline of the United States. (U.S. Air Force PRINTED IN U.S.A. photo/Staff Sgt. Jason Robertson) A/TQ • Airlift/Tanker Quarterly • Winter 2013 1 44th A/TA Gathering a Resounding Success Chairman’s The A/TA’s 44th annual gathering, held in late October/early November of last year, un- der a new, somewhat cumbersome but highly informative and functional, two part moniker COMMENTS – the “44th Annual A/TA Convention & the COMMENTS 2012 AMC and A/TA Air Mobility Symposium and Technology Exposition,” was, as per usu- I write this column in early January to meet publication timelines. al, a resounding success thanks to the tireless In past years, I would comment on the success that our Association efforts of the Association’s volunteer force. enjoyed in the previous year, then I would comment o the promising The new two part name construction was events that the upcoming twelve months offered us. devised to better reflect the true nature of the To be sure, our 44th convening, in Anaheim, California, was in- combined Airlift/Tanker Association and Air deed yet another excellent professional symposium and gathering Mobility Command event – one part A/TA of mobility airmen and their supporters from around the globe. Of reunion/business gathering and one part pro- note, this was our final time in Anaheim. For the next decade at fessional air mobility symposium coordinat- least, we will alternate between Nashville and Orlando – with per- ed through an AMC and A/TA partnership. haps a year in Dallas. To maximize professional development while Most immediately, we will convene this year – for the 45th time – Gen Walter Kross conserving taxpayer dollars, the 2012 events in Orlando at the Marriott World Center. Like 2012, we plan for two USAF, Ret included 11 previously scheduled stand-alone sequential events. First, The 45th Annual A/TA Convention, 30-31 conferences, ranging from the Aeromedical October. Second, The 2013 AMC and A/TA Air Mobility Symposium Evacuation Conference to programs like High and Technology Exposition 31 October-3 November. Flight and Phoenix Stripe. But 2012 was a watershed year for A/TA and other associations who hold conventions and The 2012 gathering, which spotlighted symposia. Concerns about the induction of Staff Sergeant William H. proper spending of govern- “Last year, our challenge was to justify the Partsenbarger into the Airlift/Tanker Hall of ment funds to attend such mission-critical value of the Symposium and events moved to center stage. It Fame, marked the final time that the annual the wise expenditure of Government funds. events will be held at the Marriott and Hil- proved to be a year that could ton Hotels in Anaheim, California. The As- have significantly impacted This year, the profound impact of pending sociation has simply out grown the venue. our Association in many ways. Sequestration, and serious pressure from the There is no doubt that the The 2013 events will be held at the Marriott longer term Austerity needed to deal with World Center Resort in Orlando, Florida. A center of gravity for A/TA, ac- list of future locations appears on page 3. tivity-wise, is our Annual Con- our Nation’s fiscal limits, are upon us.” The 2012 Symposium featured several ma- vention and Air Mobility Sym- jor addresses by distinguished leaders, includ- posium and Technology Exposition. In fact, this event is the largest such gathering held each ing U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. year that significantly involves the attendance of uniformed Air Force men and women – the Welsh III, Transportation Command com- largest by far. mander Gen. William M. Fraser IV, Com- We co-sponsor the Air Mobility Symposium with Air Mobility Command each year. In mander of Air Mobility Command Gen. Ray 2012, AMC was resolute about the professional value of the Symposium and justified the Johns, and Chief Master Sgt of the Air Force continuance of the Symposium (which was combined with a dozen other mini-conferences James A. Roy, among others. For me personal- to improve efficiency). The Air Force Leadership strongly supported AMC’s recommendation. ly, the highlight of the AMC and A/TA Sympo- And so A/TA Anaheim 2012 took place successfully – with a number of interesting changes sium was the final presentation made by AMC that we have discussed before. commander General Johns – a remarkable re- Now 2013 is upon us. This year’s challenges appear even more daunting than last year’s. counting of significant Air Mobility moments Last year, our challenge was to justify the mission-critical value of the Symposium and the punctuated by the presence of the amazing wise expenditure of Government funds. This year, the profound impact of pending Sequestra- men and women who lived them! tion, and serious pressure from the longer term Austerity needed to deal with our Nation’s fis- Remarkably, while Air Mobility expertise, cal limits, are upon us. DoD is already considering decisive steps to deal with these profound professinalism, actions and history were be- conditions. ing celebrated on the west coast, Air Mobility A/TA has initiated a strategic planning process aimed at re-inventing the Association. Our forces were busy displaying those very quali- goal is simple: to be pertinent and valuable to Mobility Airmen worldwide – an association ties on the east coast in response to Super- for