Airmen from the 60th Aerial Port Squadron at Travis Air Force Base and airmen from the 4th Airlift Squadron, JAnointed Base Lewis-McChordWashingtonparticipated in a joint effort to support the United States Navy in a ship recovery mission to China Lake Naval Weapons StationApril 8, 2022.

The recovery mission provided Travis AFB Airmen the opportunity to showcase their agile capabilities in conjunction with another branch of service at any time.

The United States Navy recovered a F-35C Lightning II assigned to Carrier Air Wing 2 after crashing during a routine operation in the South China Sea, according to a Navy report published March 3.

The F-35 was recovered from a depth of 12,400 feet.

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime joint operation where we can put our skills to the test in helping the Navy transport their equipment,” said Senior Airman Austin Wollenberg, airlift specialist and crew chief of the 60th APS.

Loadmasters from 4th AS worked with ramp operators from 60th APS to ensure a Tunner 60K aircraft cargo loader from Travis AFB was loaded and secured onto a C-17 Globemaster III.

“Our three-man team will fly to China Lake to unload the K loader and transport the aircraft to its final destination,” Wollenberg said.

The aircraft will be flown to Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake for further analysis, testing and evaluation.

“My job as an air transport specialist keeps me awake. One day we could be helping a family PCS, while the next day we could be carrying 2,000 pound bombs and the next day providing medical aid,” he said. -he declares. “It is gratifying to understand the impact of the port on the whole Air Mobility Command assignment. Everything that the whole army needs at any time, we transport it on our cargo plane.

The cause of the incident is still under investigation by the US Navy.