145th MAFFS Aircrew builds ties with Colombian counterparts

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Winston Rheinbolt, crew chief for the 145th Maintenance Squadron, and Master Sgt. Pennie Brawley, loadmaster for the 145th Airlift Wing, explain the operations of a Modular Airborne Firefighting System II (MAFFS II) to senior aircrew instructors within the Colombian Fuerza Aerea C-130 community. Each officer from the 81st, Escuadrón de Transporte, Bogota were given a first-hand look at the MAFFS II unit being loaded in the cargo area of the 145th AW, C-130 Hercules aircraft during the 2015 annual classroom certification and re-certification training, held April 29 thru May 3, 2015 at the North Carolina Air National Guard Base, Charlotte Douglas International Airport. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Patricia F. Moran, 145th Public Affairs/Released)

145th MAFFS Aircrew builds ties with Colombian counterparts

U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Pennie Brawley, loadmaster for the 145th Airlift Wing, explains while Senior Airman Winston Rheinbolt, crew chief for the 145th Maintenance Squadron, translates in Spanish, the procedures used when operating a Modular Airborne Firefighting System II (MAFFS II) to visiting aircrew member from Colombian Fuerza Aerea C-130 community. Senior aircrew instructors from the 81st, Escuadrón de Transporte, Bogota were given a first-hand look at the unit during the 2015 annual classroom certification and re-certification training, held April 29 thru May 3, 2015 at the North Carolina Air National Guard Base, Charlotte Douglas International Airport. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Patricia F. Moran, 145th Public Affairs/Released)

145th MAFFS Aircrew builds ties with Colombian counterparts

North Carolina Air National Guard aerial porters, use an all-terrain forklift to carry a nozzle of a Modular Airborne Firefighting System II (MAFFS II) to waiting 145th Airlift Wing, C-130 Hercules aircraft at the North Carolina Air National Guard Base, Charlotte Douglas International Airport; April 29, 2015, in preparation for the 2015 MAFFS annual training being held in Greenville, S.C. MAFFS II discharges the fire retardant through the special nozzle installed and sealed in the modified paratrooper door on the left side of the aircraft. This allows the aircraft to remain pressurized during drop sequences. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Patricia F. Moran, 145th Public Affairs/Released)

145th MAFFS Aircrew builds ties with Colombian counterparts

Senior aircrew instructors from the 81st, Escuadrón de Transporte, Bogota, Colombian Fuerza Aerea, were given a first-hand look at a Modular Airborne Firefighting System II (MAFFS II) being loaded into the cargo area of a C-130 Hercules aircraft by 145th Airlift Wing, aerial porters and maintainers at the North Carolina Air National Guard Base, Charlotte Douglas International Airport; April 29, 2015. The Colombians were visiting the NCANG during MAFFS 2015 annual training to gain insight on how aerial firefighting is planned, prepared for and executed. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Patricia F. Moran, 145th Public Affairs/Released)

145th MAFFS Aircrew builds ties with Colombian counterparts

Published June 30, 2015
By Master Sgt. Patricia F. Moran
145th Public Affairs

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- North and South Carolina Air National Guard units welcomed the Colombian Air Force or Colombian Fuerza Aerea to tour and participate in this year's Modular Airborne Firefighting System II classroom certification and re-certification training April 29 thru May 3, 2015 at the North Carolina Air National Guard Base.

The Colombian Air Force was named to be the lead agency in developing an aerial firefighting capability for Colombia and reached out to their South Carolina State Partners at the 169th Fighter Wing for assistance.

In turn, the SCANG reached out to the NCANG to coordinate a visit during the 2015 MAFFS II training with Wyoming Air National Guard in Charlotte N.C.

"We are very grateful for the hospitality each member of the 145 Airlift Wing showed us and our Colombian counterparts throughout this week," said Lt. Col. Andrew M. Thorne, director of the SCANG State Partnership Program. "We look forward to future opportunities to share insights of aerial firefighting and C-130 operations."

The visiting officers from the 81st, Escuadrón de Transporte, Bogota, each a senior instructor within the Colombian Fuerza Aerea C-130 aircraft community, were given a first-hand look at the MAFFS II unit being loaded in the cargo area of the 145th Airlift Wing's Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft. With the help of Senior Airman Winston Rheinbolt, crew chief for the 145th Maintenance Squadron, and Master Sgt. Pennie Brawley, loadmaster for the 145th Airlift Wing, these Colombian AF officers learned the operations of the MAFFS mission from the loadmaster's position in the back to the aircrew's responsibilities on the flight deck. Each officer gained insight into how aerial firefighting is planned, prepared for and executed with respect to each of their respective career fields during their visit at NCANG.

Since 2012, the Republic of Colombia and the state of South Carolina have been partners under the auspices of the State Partnership Program.

MAFFS is a self-contained aerial firefighting system, owned by the U.S. Forest Service and fits inside special C-130 aircraft. Each wing is required to have five certified crews for each MAFFS unit. The 145th Airlift Wing has 20 qualified crews.