On Sunday, the Pentagon ordered six U.S. airlines to provide commercial aircraft to help with evacuations from Afghanistan.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III ordered the Commander of U.S. Transportation Command to activate Stage I of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF). This gives the Department of Defense access to commercial air mobility resources to augment support to the Department of State to evacuate U.S. citizens and personnel, Special Immigrant Visa applicants, and other at-risk individuals from Afghanistan.
The current activation is for 18 aircraft: three each from:
- American Airlines
- Atlas Air
- Delta Air Lines
- Omni Air
It also includes:
- Two from Hawaiian Airlines
- Four from United Airlines
In a release, the Department of Defense says it doesn’t anticipate a major impact to commercial flights from the activation.
What They Will Do
CRAF activated aircraft will not fly into Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, the Pentagon’s release said. Instead, they will be used for the onward movement of passengers from temporary safe havens and interim staging bases. Activating CRAF increases passenger movement beyond organic capability and allows military aircraft to focus on operations in and out of in Kabul.
CRAF is a National Emergency Preparedness Program designed to augment the Department’s airlift capability and is a core component of USTRANSCOM’s ability to meet national security interests and contingency requirements. Under CRAF, the commercial carriers retain their Civil Status under FAA regulations while USTRANSCOM exercises mission control via its air component, Air Mobility Command.
This is the third CRAF activation in the history of the program. The first was in support of Operations Desert Shield/Storm from Aug. 1990 to May ‘91), and the second was for Operation Iraqi Freedom from Feb. 2002 to June ‘03.
A CNN report Sunday said Delta is scheduled to have multiple relief flights arriving back in the U.S. beginning Monday morning. In the same report, American said it will be set to send out “three widebody aircraft,” starting Monday, while United is activating four Boeing 777-300s.
“The images from Afghanistan are heartbreaking,” American said in a statement. “The airline is proud and grateful of our pilots and flight attendants, who will be operating these trips to be a part of this life-saving effort.”
Atlas Air, the the largest supplier of airlift to the U.S. military, voiced similar support in a company release.
“We are proud to provide this essential passenger service in the region at this critical time,” it said.
