ARLINGTON, Va. – National Guard Airmen and Soldiers from around the United States are playing a key role in the historic evacuation of tens of thousands of people from Afghanistan.
The Air National Guard is contributing to Operation Allies Refuge with 11 C-17 aircraft and 19 crews providing safe passage to Americans and Afghan allies from Kabul to locations throughout the region. In addition, 11 Air National Guard KC-135s and 22 crews are refueling aircraft over the skies of Afghanistan, while pilotless MQ-9 Reapers watch over Afghanistan from the air.
Five Air Guard squadrons are providing lifesaving aeromedical evacuation.
Also, 26 Air National Guard C-130 aircraft and 30 crews are providing transport to evacuees within the United States.
By Aug. 24, the massive airlift by the U.S. military, coalition and partners had accelerated to the point that one aircraft was leaving Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul about every 39 minutes.
About 88,000 American citizens, civilian allies, Afghan special immigrant visa applicants and other vulnerable Afghans have been taken out of harm's way since Aug. 14, Army Maj. Gen. William D. "Hank" Taylor said at a Pentagon briefing today.
During a 24-hour period Aug. 24, he said 42 U.S. military aircraft departed Kabul with 11,200 people and coalition and allied partners flew 7,800 people to safety. Another 10,000 people were at the airport awaiting departure.
"88,000 in the course of just a week, a week and a half is no small feat," Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby said at the briefing.
Among those helping transport evacuees is the Alaska Air National Guard's 176th Wing, with two C-17 Globemaster III aircraft. The aircraft are assigned to the AKANG's 144th Airlift Squadron based at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.
With the aircraft are three aircrews; one is all ANG (144th AS), one is all active-duty, regular Air Force (517th AS at JBER), and one is a mixed/TFI crew.
The 144th AS will have another all-ANG crew joining the effort within the next week.
On the ground in Kabul, the Minnesota National Guard is helping secure Hamid Karzai International Airport.
The Minnesota Guard's Task Force 1-194 was positioned to respond because it was mobilized in March to serve as the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) Regional Response Force based in Camp Buehring, Kuwait.
Alongside units from the 82nd Airborne Division, 10th Mountain Division, Marine Special Purpose Air Ground Task Force, and Marine Expeditionary Unit, Task Force 1-194 is securing vital sectors of the Kabul airport and providing humanitarian assistance to U.S. citizens, special immigrant visa holders, and their families.
"The Soldiers of Task Force 1-194 were called upon to execute a challenging mission, and they have done so with professionalism," said Army Lt. Col. Jake Helgestad, Task Force 1-194 commander. "They have shown strength, compassion, and resolve despite danger and difficulty."
U.S. Central Command is overseeing the evacuation mission in Kabul. Vulnerable Afghans will stay temporarily at U.S. military bases at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin; Fort Bliss, Texas; Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey; and Fort Lee, Virginia, while they finalize their immigration processing.
Taylor said today that several thousand evacuees had arrived in the United States, with 1,200 landing at Dulles International Airport outside the nation's capital in the previous 24 hours.
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Lt. Col Candis Olmstead, Alaska National Guard, and Capt. Charles Anderson and Capt. Andrea Drost, Minnesota National Guard, contributed to this story.
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