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The 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing is streamlining the process to expedite the transportation of evacuees from Ramstein Air Base to other transient locations.
With the help of the U.S. Army, Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Department of State, German nationals and military members, the 521st AMOW has turned one of the largest aircraft hangars at Ramstein into a supplemental passenger terminal.
“We’re continually looking for ways to make things more efficient,” said U.S. Air Force Col. Adrienne Williams, 521st AMOW commander. “We’ve moved the different stages of the passenger terminal to different locations so we could maximize our gate capacity and get our evacuees to the U.S.”
Along with U.S. Air Force aircraft, there are approximately 13 commercial airliners that are taking evacuees from Ramstein to the U.S. and other transient locations.
“This is a humanitarian mission and we’re focused on saving lives,” Williams said. “For us in Air Mobility Command, this is what we do. We move people, take care of airplanes and we focus on rapid global mobility.”
The new innovative procedures ensure evacuees are processed through security for the safety of the passengers and the flight, then bags are tagged to ensure that evacuees aren’t separated from their valuables during travel.
“We’ve definitely improved our process by leveraging our partnerships with the 86th Airlift Wing and the 521st AMOW. We’ve accomplished so much already,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. John Burdick, 721st Aerial Port Squadron Air Freight Flight commander. “I want to thank every agency who has helped to create this process, and every agency that maintains and secures our facility.”
As of Sept. 2, more than 12,000 evacuees have departed Ramstein.
