Convoy mitigation - Al Asad aerial porters saving countless lives moving air cargo in Operation Iraqi Freedom

AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq — Tech. Sgt. Geoffrey Crowe, front, Cargo Section NCOIC with 438th Aerial Port Flight at Al Asad, and Senior Master Sgt. Tom Luke, back, Day Shift Supervisor with the 438th APF coordinate offload of a Charleston AFB, S.C. C-17 Globemaster III. Since the beginning of AEF 5/6 in January, the 438th's Aerial Porters have processed more than 32,000 passengers, 15,528 tons of cargo, and more than 2,600 aircraft keeping nearly 12,000 personnel off the roads in convoys, undoubtedly saving many lives that might have been lost in improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and Anti-Iraqi forces attacks during over-the-road convoys that have been mitigated through airlift. Both sergeants are deployed from the 76th Aerial Port Squadron, Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Master Sgt. Bryan Ripple)