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Loadmaster travels the globe, delivers supplies

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Amber R. Kelly-Herard
  • 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
"Been there, done that."

It's Staff Sgt. Kevin Alexander's mantra.

As a loadmaster from the 6th Airlift Squadron from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., Sergeant Alexander travels approximately 200 days out the the year.

"You name a location, and I have probably been there or point to anything around here and I've probably delivered to one of them," said Sergeant Alexander, a Brooklyn, N.Y., native.

On June 16, the sergeant stopped at Bagram to deliver four Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, but within 10 minutes, he was off to another location to pick up more cargo.

As a loadmaster, Sergeant Alexander delivers everything from equipment to supplies, from incoming and outgoing troops to patients.

"The hardest thing is when we have to make six different stops, unload and then reconfigure the plane to be loaded again and then take off again," he said.

Sergeant Alexander says it normally takes about 15 minutes to reconfigure a plane.

"Medical evacuations are the longest, they take about 30 minutes," said Sergeant Alexander.

Another challenge to his job is that he never knows where he'll land next.

"You don't know what the conditions will be like, but it's interesting to find out," said Sergeant Alexander.

Other things that have to be considered include making sure the weight load is not too heavy, and using the proper restraints so nothing breaks.

Sergeant Alexander is currently flying with what is considered a basic crew consisting of two pilots and two loadmasters. This enables them to fly for 16 hours at a time. When there are three pilots, they can fly for 24 hours.

"It can be chaotic, but I enjoy the traveling," said the sergeant. "I know that what I do helps my fellow servicemembers."