Christmas came early this week in the South-Eastern Pacific as the U.S. Air Force resumed its annual humanitarian assistance training mission delivering donations to remote islands in Guam.
The weeklong event officially began Monday with a push ceremony at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam.
“Operation Christmas Drop is not just about delivering tangible goods,” Wesley Simina, president of the Federated States of Micronesia, said during the event. “It is a testament to the enduring partnership between our nations and our shared values of goodwill and cooperation.”
“Operation Christmas Drop” transported parcels of non-perishable food, tools, toys, school books, fishing gear, and clothing by C-130s from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, to more than 55 islands. Also participating were members of Japan Air Self-Defense Force, Republic of Korea Air Force, and Royal Australian Air Force.
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“Each bundle embodies the goodwill and compassion of nations coming together to make a positive impact,” said U.S. Air Force Colonel Michael Campos, 374th Maintenance Group commander. “Each year, as we prepare to reach out to the distant corners of the Pacific, our collective efforts resonate not only with the essence of the holiday season but also with the shared values that bind us together.”
This year, Pacific Air Forces airmen, alongside members from partner nations, delivered more than 200 bundles by low-cost, low-altitude training air drops, the Air Force said.
The airdrop is a long held Air Force tradition stretching more than 70 years and is considered the Department of Defense’s longest-running humanitarian and disaster relief training mission. The long-held military tradition began in 1952 when the aircrew of a B-29 Superfortress conducting weather reconnaissance in the area on Christmas Day spotted islanders waving from an atoll in southern Micronesia that today has a population of about 500. The crew dropped some supplies attached to a parachute, launching with the bundle a new annual ritual of giving.
