Reserve Unit transports construction equipment to Washoe Tribe

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Carlos Treviño
  • 433rd AW/PA
LACKLAND AFB, TX --  An aircrew from the 433rd Airlift Wing recently demonstrated a squadron t-shirt catch phrase "You Call, We Haul". Eight vehicles, weighing 125,000 pounds, were carried from Kaneohe Bay MCAF, Hawaii to Reno, Nevada, by an Alamo Wing C-5, as part of Project TransAm.
TransAm is essentially a transportation project under the Air Force Reserve Innovative Readiness Training Program, said Senior Master Sgt. Shawn Sexton, Asst. Dept. Chief for the IRT Branch.
"We transport excess medical supplies and equipment from various bases to the nearest base or IHS, Indian Health Service, facility," said Sergeant Sexton. "IHS procures the items through the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office process and requests that we supply transport to the destination for them. The ultimate IHS customers are the Native Americans," he said.
On arrival at Reno, the keys to eight pieces of construction equipment were given to representatives from the Washoe Indian Tribe of Nevada and California for infrastructure projects on their reservations. At market value, the vehicles are worth about $1 million, according to Master Sgt. Gary Hochenberger, project manager. Sergeant Hochenberger's job is to assess the quality of the equipment and determine if the training is worth a mission to retrieve the items. He said if the vehicles were new, they could be worth double. But the value received is not limited to the tribes.
"The benefit to the Air Force is training," said Sergeant Hochenberger. "Each individual (aircrew member is) involved in the process is in upgrade or proficiency training. This program allows them to get realistic, real-world training that is normally not available elsewhere. It is a win-win situation. The Air Force receives the training they need, and the IHS customers receive desperately needed assets," he said.
Aircrew members are not the only ones who get extra experience through the TransAm program.
A team of five aerial porters worked on the equipment for 300 man-hours to get the items airworthy, Hochenberger said. This includes making sure vehicles can drive on and off the aircraft under their own power. The vehicles were cleaned, weighed, had a center of balance determined and all hazards detected and declared.
"All paperwork involved is achieved by the porters from the inception of the mission to the end," said Sergeant Hochenberger. "In transit visibility, manifesting, and load plans are all done by project personnel. In some cases they deliver the cargo directly to the reservation or arrange for commercial trucks to accommodate the process," said Sergeant Hochenberger, a supervisor with the 49th Aerial Port Flight, Grissom ARB, Ind. Sergeant Hochenberger has been with the project for over 5 years.
"In the money tight world we live in, this is priceless training for Aerial Porters, TMO and Loadmasters whose units can't afford to provide it," Sergeant Hochenberger said, "Over 95 percent of the personnel we train go on to overseas deployment within months of their tour at TransAm."
"We are excited, the equipment is beautiful and in good condition, we are very happy to get it," said Felisha Archer, Public Affairs Director for the tribe. "The equipment will save money with the infrastructure improvements that can be spent to improve the life of the tribe," she said.
"For the next two years, we will have the pleasure of having the USAF and US Army completing various construction projects for our tribe," said Washoe Tribe Health Director Frederick Rundlet. "The combined value for fiscal year 2006 to fiscal year 2009 of the labor and additional equipment from the IRT for these projects is approximately $16.8 million," he said.
"The reservation will update operating sewers and running water systems," said Ms. Archer. "Protecting infrastructure critical to maintaining the health of the people and the land is important."
"In the case of the C-5 load the 433rd supported us with; the Washoe Tribe had a need for heavy equipment for water and sewer systems. These are "Quality of Life" issues that the IHS can support," Sergeant Hochenberger said.
"The impact this program will have is huge for the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California," said Mr. Rundlet. "Our Tribal members continue to be confronted with the highest disparities of health status in all categories and receive the worst federal funding per capita to meet the financial challenges of providing health access and the highest quality of care that other US citizens enjoy."
Access to safe roads by all members for medical care is another concern this equipment addresses. During the first week on the reservation, the Washoe tribe used the equipment to build an ambulance access ramp at a tribal clinic.
"We are constructing community centers for two of our communities, wherein we will have satellite medical, dental, eye and mental health care provided to improve access for our tribal members, especially our elders, disabled and those without transportation means, we are Nevada rural," said Mr. Rundlet.
"Initially it will be used for road work on the California side of the reservation. The roads there are almost non existent, this will improve safety," said Ms. Archer.
Tribal Trust Land covers 4,200 acres in rural Nevada and encompasses four counties in the states of Nevada and California. The tribe also lists 61,000 additional acres of tribal allotment land (a different type of Indian land, but still overseen by the Washoe), further emphasizing the point that safe roads are a necessity.
Access to hard to reach areas for fire protection is another way the equipment will benefit the tribe and its neighbors according to Ms. Archer. Wildfires in the Western United States, fueled by dry desert vegetation are a serious problem during the summer months.
The Army will working with the Air Force to repair many of our roads in our four tribal communities over the next two years, Mr. Rundlet explained.
"You may not be aware, but the leading cause of death and injury on tribal reservations is due to auto and truck vehicle accidents, mainly due to bad roads," he said.
The tribe, which numbers about 1,700, half of whom live in the reservation's four communities, will see other improvements.
"Each of the four communities is spread out on the reservation," Archer said. They are separated by 20-26 miles of land along and in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, which means that safe roads connecting the communities to each other and the outside are essential.
"We don't have safe areas for students to wait for the school bus, or if members want to walk on the road," said Ms. Archer. "We want to make sure the road does not become a distraction."
Ms. Archer explained there would also be an economic impact which could produce revenue from agriculture. She cited accessibility to ranch land that was previously very dangerous on foot or by vehicle. In turn, the ranch will produce food for the tribe, and lower dependency on expensive outside commercial sources.
In addition, two of the tractors will be used on tribal ranches and farms for the cultivation of food for consumption and hay and alfalfa for cattle according to Mr. Rundlet.
"All of the efforts by the many men and women of these two branches of our military are being utilized for peace and humanitarian efforts that will only serve to enhance and maintain the health status of our Tribal members," he said.
Practical experience is only one benefit to the men and women in the armed forces. The other bonus is something that can't be counted in man-hours or short tons.
"Being able to see firsthand the impact on the American Indians and Alaskan natives we serve in priceless," said Sergeant Hochenberger. "Short of working in direct support of the war, this is the most rewarding work I have been involved in."