Landing support, embarkation Marines streamline relief efforts

Photo By Matthew Manning | Cpl. Christopher J. Richards tightens a strap on a pallet of relief supplies Dec. 14 at Villamor Air Base in Manila, Republic of the Philippines. The supplies, donated to assist recovery efforts following Typhoon Pablo (international name Bopha), were then transported to the heavily-affected southern region of the country for further distribution. Marines have been helping the Philippine Armed Forces with the logistical aspect of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations. Richards is a landing support specialist with Combat Logistics Regiment 37, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force.  

MANILA, PHILIPPINES

12.14.2012

Story by Lance Cpl. Matthew Manning 

III Marine Expeditionary Force   

VILLAMOR AIR BASE, Manila, Republic of the Philippines- After Typhoon Pablo (international name Bopha) made landfall Dec. 4 in the Philippines, bringing heavy winds and rain to the southern part of the country, Marines responded to a request by the Philippine Government Dec. 8 within hours to help a key ally in need.

Due to the key enabling abilities of experienced landing support specialist and logistic embarkation specialist Marines, a continuous stream of relief supplies has departed from Villamor Air Base Dec. 8-16 to areas heavily affected by the typhoon to be distributed by Philippine Government and nongovernmental organizations.

“We are providing humanitarian aid and disaster relief in Mindanao’s Davao Region, the area hit hardest by the typhoon,” said Capt. William M. Seabrook, a KC-130J Hercules co-pilot and flight duty officer with Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152, Marine Aircraft Group 3, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force. “We are taking aid supplies including blankets, rice, canned goods, generators, building supplies and personnel to support the ongoing operations led by the Philippines.”

To help the Armed Forces of the Philippines in logistical aspects of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations, III MEF sent a team of Marines to assist with the loading and embarkation process of relief supplies, according to Cpl. Scott H. Prutch, a landing support specialist with Combat Logistics Regiment 37, 3rd Marine Logistics Regiment, III MEF.

“When we got here, the Philippine service members were working very hard to get the supplies staged and out,” said Prutch. “We wanted to help out in whatever way we could, so we took what we have learned from our experiences and, along with the Philippine service members, made the process more efficient.”

Utilizing the expertise of the landing support and embarkation team and more than 20 service members from the Philippine Armed Forces together, relief supplies were quickly and efficiently palletized and loaded onto the aircraft, according to Prutch.

“We unload three to five trucks a day, each truck makes four pallets, and each flight takes six pallets to Davao,” said Prutch. “We have about 15 pallets staged to be loaded onto the planes at all times and we load the planes at night so first thing in the morning, the pilots are able to begin transporting goods without having to wait.”

As the landing support Marines and Philippine service members build each pallet, they do so with the instruction from the embarkation specialists, according to Sgt. Steven A. Ybarra, a logistics embarkation specialist with Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron 1, 1st MAW.

“As the senior embarkation specialist on deck, I coordinate with the command element here to find out which relief supplies and how much of it they want to go on each flight,” said Ybarra. “From their instruction, I build a load plan for the pallet in both weight and dimensions with the supplies they designate.”

Having already moved more than 500,000 pounds of donated relief supplies, the Marines are inspired to continue diligently to prepare more loads for additional flights, according to Prutch.

“We can’t see the back end of our work right now because we are not there for the off-loading of the aircraft,” said Prutch. “From what the crew chiefs have told us, the supplies are practically ripped out of the plane as fast as they can be by Philippine service members to get distributed to those in need. By building the loads as fast as we can, it means we can send more flights out in a day and ultimately help more people, which is what we are here for.”

The willingness to take part in the ongoing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations comes from countless hours of training, according to Seabrook.

“It is not very often we are able to put our skill sets into use during real world operations,” said Seabrook. ”A lot of the time, we are just doing training exercises or moving equipment for the Marine Aircraft Group or the Marine Aircraft Wing. The chance to come here, engage with the local population, and execute a mission that has a real life impact is very special for everyone involved.”

• Date Taken: 12.14.2012
• Date Posted: 12.15.2012 20:25
• Story ID: 99361
• Location: MANILA, PH