STRATTON AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, SCOTIA, N.Y. –The New York Air National Guard’s 109th Airlift Wing wrapped up its annual support to the National Science Foundation in Greenland when Airmen and LC-130 “Skibirds” returned to Stratton Air National Guard Base on Aug. 23.
The unit supplied 2.4 million pounds of cargo, eighty-six-thousand gallons of fuel and delivered 1300 passengers to research locations across the Greenland Ice Cap. The wing’s aircrews flew a total of 721 hours support the science stations from April to August.
Four hundred Airmen rotated through the mission during the five-month time frame. Three LC-130 Hercules aircraft were deployed during each of the seven deployment periods.
The wing also conducted two Barren Land Arctic Survival Training classes, known as BLAST for short, with survival, escape, resistance, and evasion expert instructors from the 66th Training Squadron from Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska.