8th EAMS ramp services load “tons” of cargo

by Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton
379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

After performing a foreign object check on its tires, an excavator is moved to a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. The C-17 will fly the heavy equipment to a forward operating location in Afghanistan where 1st Expeditionary Civil Engineer Group units will use it to support ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom missions. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Airmen from the 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron prepare as an excavator is brought on board a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. The C-17 will fly the heavy equipment to a forward operating location in Afghanistan where 1st Expeditionary Civil Engineer Group units will use it to support ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom missions. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Airmen from the 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron and 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron load an excavator onto a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. The C-17 will fly the heavy equipment to a forward operating location in Afghanistan where 1st Expeditionary Civil Engineer Group units will use it to support ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom missions. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Airmen from the 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron, 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron and loadmasters from the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron load an excavator onto a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. The C-17 will fly the heavy equipment to a forward operating location in Afghanistan where 1st Expeditionary Civil Engineer Group units will use it to support ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom missions. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Airmen from the 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron, 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron and loadmasters from the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron load an excavator onto a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. The C-17 will fly the heavy equipment to a forward operating location in Afghanistan where 1st Expeditionary Civil Engineer Group units will use it to support ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom missions. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Senior Airman Marcanthony Khan secures an excavator with chains onboard a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. Khan is an 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron air transportation technician deployed from Joint Base Charleston, S.C. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Staff Sgt. Adam Rozehnal checks to make sure an excavator has the proper blocking before it is loaded onto a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. Rozehnal is an 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron air transportation supervisor deployed from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Senior Airman Jeffrey Montgomery and Staff Sgt. Adam Rozehnal check to make sure an excavator has the proper documentation and hazardous materials are stored correctly before it is loaded onto a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. Montgomery is an 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron air transportation technician deployed from Joint Base Charleston, S.C., and Rozehnal is an 8th EAMS air transportation supervisor deployed from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Staff Sgt. Adam Rozehnal briefs his team on safety requirements prior to loading cargo and equipment onto a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. Rozehnal is an 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron air transportation supervisor deployed from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

Tech. Sgt. Thomas Wyatt operates an excavator as it is loaded onto a C-17 Globemaster III at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing in Southwest Asia, July 17, 2013. Wyatt is a 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron pavement construction equipment craftsman deployed from Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

(U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton)

“We’re extremely vital; without air transportation, who knows how long it would take to convoy all this cargo to these locations,” said Staff Sgt. Jeremy Jweinat, an 8th EAMS ramp services technician deployed from Tinker Air Force Base, Okla. “We can have it [the cargo] there in a moment’s notice and we’re responsible for making sure it gets on the plane.”

The 8th EAMS ramp services mission begins at ramp dispatch.

“Our dispatchers are the eyes and ears of the operation,” Jweinat said. “They coordinate setup, upload, download and arrival times for aircraft and send out the crews to do the missions.”

A mission of this magnitude also requires a sound load plan to make sure the jet is properly balanced for flight and max fuel efficiency.

“They plan all the loads,” he said. “They do all the checks and balances with the weight to make sure it’s good to go before we get the load plan and set it up.”

“It’s a calculations game,” added Staff Sgt. Adam Rozehnal, an 8th EAMS air transportation supervisor deployed from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. “The heavy equipment is chained down in the front of the jet and then followed by light and lighter equipment eventually ending with the pallets.”

Rozehnal said this is primarily done so if they need to jettison any of the cargo in flight, the loadmaster and aircrew can make the proper on-the-fly modifications.

“It’s not crazy math, but there are a lot of calculations we do to make sure everything is buttoned down safely,” said Rozehnal.

Ramp services Airmen primarily use their 10K all-terrain forklift and the Tunner 60K aircraft cargo loader and transporter to upload and download the jets.

“These loaders allow the cargo to be anything from supplies to equipment to vehicles,” said Jweinat. “We can also load anything from MRAPs [Mine Resistant Ambush Protected] and Humvees to tanks and other aircraft, depending on the airframe.”

These Airmen must also interact with the jet’s loadmasters.

“We work alongside the loadmasters to make sure everything is locked in place using chains,” Jweinat said. “This cargo can be sent all over the AOR and especially to the front lines to support the joint war fighter.”

However, with most military units, timeliness is a key factor to ongoing operations, especially in the deployed environment.

“Everything we do here is run on a specific timeline,” explained Jweinat. “Because if we delay an aircraft it costs the Air Force a lot of money — so load planning gives us our load plans six hours in advance. The dispatcher then coordinates movement in the yard and dispatches teams to setup loads so everything is done on time and by the book safely so we don’t delay an aircraft.”

For these Airmen, they’re just doing their job.

“We’re just doing what we need to do to help the people in the fight down range,” said Rozehnal.

[Editor’s note: This article is part three of an eight part series highlighting the unique missions accomplished by the Airmen of 8th EAMS.]