Alamo Airmen reflect on Katrina

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Bryan Swink
  • 433rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO - LACKLAND, Texas --  Widely considered one of the worst natural disasters to ever touch American soil, Hurricane Katrina's effect is still being felt by many residents of the Gulf Coast Region 10 years later.

Members of the 433rd Airlift Wing were some of the first responders to jump into action moments after Katrina broke the levees and flooded the city of New Orleans. A small group of 433rd Aeromedical Squadron members flew over the city to survey the damage and set up operations at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.

"We had no idea of what to expect because all lines of communication in and out of the city were down," said Chief Master Sgt. Rodney Christa, 433rd AES superintendent and senior enlisted leader on site during Katrina. "When we saw the extent of the damage, we knew it would be a full-scale operation that would require a much larger team than we initially brought."

With tens of thousands of New Orleans' residents migrating to the airport for help, the 433rd AES set up operations in the airport to begin evacuating passengers out of the city.  This operation didn't begin without countless obstacles the team needed to overcome.

"There was no working electricity, running water or plumbing, and cell phone towers were inoperable," said Christa. "Every square inch of the airport was filled with a family that had laid roots waiting on help to arrive. With no plumbing, you can imagine the smell and stench that consumed the air. We knew we had to do everything we could and give every ounce of energy to get these good people out of here."

With reinforcements continuously coming in, the growing team worked around the clock to get as many New Orleans residents to safety as possible.

One of those missions was a team from the 433rd AW whose primary goal was to get as many people safely loaded onto the C-5 Galaxy and transport them out of the flooded city.

"We flew seven missions within a 72-hour period and transferred the New Orleans residents to cities like Houston, Little Rock, and San Antonio where they would receive the attention the deserved," said Master Sgt. Anthony Gutierrez, 433rd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron flying crew chief during Hurricane Katrina. "With safety of the passengers being our main priority, we transferred between 80 and 200 people on each flight."

Not every 433rd AW mission was directly tied to removing passengers from the hurricane-ravaged city. Many missions were designed to bring volunteers and supplies to provide support still in the city and to begin the rebuilding process.

"Since the power was out over the entire city, we knew that restoring that power was a huge priority," said Master Sgt. Charles Keller, 433rd AMXS flying crew chief during Hurricane Katrina. "We flew to Travis Air Force Base, California to pick up electricians and six of their trucks to bring to New Orleans so they could begin to get the power up and running."

Food was also a major need for the residents stranded in the airport and Keller and his team provided just that.

"We flew to Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia to pick up 36 pallets of (Meal's Ready to Eat) and bring those to the people of New Orleans," said Keller. "It was a necessity that we knew would be vital to the survival of thousands in need."

The Alamo Wing and its Citizen Airmen proved they were ready to support the nation and will continue to provide the best combat ready forces.