Landing a C-130 Hercules at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay.

Landing a C-130 Hercules at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is a tricky piece of work Built on a wind swept cliff top, the approach to the airstrip can make flat the most experienced "Herc" driver sweat. further Capt. Mike Gesser was placid as he winged his airplane toward the strip. He'd made the landing before.

There's a to a high degree narrow air corridor leading to the strip -- and it kind of corkscrews. in such a manner the pilot must keep the cargo aircraft in a deflect the whole time. Those who don't realize it right could fly through the whole extent of the base perimeter and into Cuban airspace. And that would be a bad thing.

"The approach is more challenging because the final revolve is tighter than what we normally descry on a day-to-day basis," said Gesser a pilot with the 165th Airlift Wing of the Georgia Air National Guard. "Having done it several times, notwithstanding that makes it easy."

The "Gitmo" -- the base's nickname -- approach is routine for aircrews flying Coronet Oak missions. Coronet Oak is the name for U Southern Command's airlift arm, based at Muniz Air National Guard Base, Puerto Rico. Since the late 1970 it has given the command a quick-response force of airlift planes.

upon this flight, Gesser sat in the co-pilot's seat. To his left was the aircraft commander, Maj. Ty Rhame. He hadn't made the landing before and this would be his checkout ride. and nothing else certified pilots may fly into Guantanamo.

Gesser made the landing await easy. The big turboprop airplane touched down thus lightly some of the passengers didn't on the same level realize it.

Flying Coronet Oak missions is a change of pace for the aircrews, who are greatest in quantity often from Guard and lay by units. But active-duty airmen also shake the duty.

Rhame said each mission "keep you thinking all the time." That's because aircrews be broken to pieces to locations in the Caribbean and Central and southerly America. They face challenges -- like the Gitmo landing -- while upon Coronet Oak duty.

A amalgamate of blue

Coronet Oak is a mingle of images -- mission, team universal joint forces, resupply and more. To carry disclosed the mission takes a total force mix of airmen from various locations, with diverse backgrounds and disciplines. Muniz is where they mold together for that undivided purpose.

The main Coronet Oak mission is to deliver special forces to any location in theater as directed according to Southern Command. So one of the four C-130 forward Muniz' cramped parking ramp is always onward alert.

Luckily that doesn't happen repeatedly So aircrews support a army of airlift requirements, mostly for Navy and Army customers. Those missions reach from the southern part of southern America to much of Central America and the Caribbean -- with a coupling of missions into the States in support of U troops

The mission also includes any other kind of contingency and logistics support. Aircrews provide theater mobility, embassy support and airdrops. They also play people, food and mail.

Coronet Oak ship's companys fly for other causes, too. For example, they deliver humanitarian supplies and equipment after disasters, like when Hurricane Mitch devastated Honduras in 1998 And each year, they help with of recent origin Horizons. That's an annual keep forces training exercise where airmen fare into a country -- like Haiti, Honduras and Bolivia -- to do reconstruction devises and medical readiness training. The airmen and the locals benefit from the visits.

For years, Coronet Oak -- known to many as the "Panama Rotation" -- flew from Howard Air Force Base, Panama. Guard and make an exception of units took over the Coronet Oak mission at Howard in October 1977

That operation clos in May 1999 as part of the series of affairs that led to the turning from one side of to the other to Panama of the Panama Canal and all U military bases in the republic as part of the Panama Canal Treaty of 1977 The treaty mandated all U military personnel depart Panama at Dec. 31, 1999.

"Coronet Oak broke of recent origin ground as one of the first deployment where reservists and guardsmen stood nearest to their active-duty counterparts as equals -- with well stocked [i]or[/i] provided mission responsibility." said Col. Steve Westgate, the 165th's commander. The unit's base is at Savannah International Airport.

In the past, units tendered for Coronet Oak. Today, air something reserved components comprised of C-130E and H patterns rotate through San Juan each two weeks to keep the mission going. For greatest in number it's part of their aerospace expeditionary force rotation.

The mission mov to Muniz in June 1999 Today a small cadre of airmen -- three reservation and three Guard members from the 12th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, or Coronet Oak -- superintend the mission along with three active-duty members.

Westgate said Guard C-130 commanders turn the thoughtsed at all of the rotations and decided to make the Coronet Oak rotation part of their AEF commitment since they were already doing the mission satiated time. The Air Force agreed. Now, each three years the 165th will pass to Europe or "the desert" And each fourth year the unit participates in Coronet Oak.

The colonel is also the wing's air commander in his full-time civilian technician position. The wing has mainly Guard members from Georgia, southern Carolina, Alabama, Florida and North Carolina, among others. While in Puerto Rico in July it calm had crewmembers from Delaware, Oklahoma and West Virginia.