The US Air Force teamed up with Canada to deliver supplies to the northernmost inhabited place in the world
The station, located on Ellesmere Island, Nunavut — 490 miles south of the North Pole — is home to around 55 Canadian Forces military and civilian personnel year-round.
The wing, which flies the largest ski-equipped aircraft in the world, teamed up with the Canadian Armed Force's 8 Wing, based in Trenton, Ontario to conduct the mission. 8 Wing is the higher headquarters for the Alert station.
The Canadian Forces asked specifically for funded the 109th's participation in accomplishing the resupply mission as part of broader bi-national Arctic Force Package initiatives, according to Vaughan.
"Beyond operating the amazing LC-130 aircraft, the men and women of the 109th Airlift Wing are polar execution experts," Vaughan added.
The mission profile called for one C-130 from the 109th to fly to Thule Air Base in Greenland, the northernmost installation operation by the US military, and then fly cargo from there to Alert. The 109th personnel included two full crews of six airmen, for a total of twelve, and eight maintenance personnel.
The 109th Airlift Wing carried bulk cargo which allowed the Canadian Armed Forces, which employed a C-130J and C-17 cargo plane, to focus on carrying fuel for generators and heating, explained New York Air National Guard Major Jacob Papp, an aircraft commander.
The three aircraft flew missions around the clock to supply the Alert outpost.
The conditions in the Arctic this time of year can be less than ideal, Papp said. The crews experience freezing fog, low visibility and high winds, making approaches and landing difficult at times. Despite the weather, the 109th Airlift Wing crews were able to complete 37.4 hours of flying for the operation, he added.
"It was great to get out there and use the skills that we train for all the time, to land on a really short strip given the conditions and unimproved surface." Papp said. "We look forward to working with them (Canadian Forces) again."
The 109th Airlift Wing has a long history of operating in the Arctic in support of American and Canadian operations. In 2014, 2015 and 2016, the 109th Airlift Wing participated in Operation NUNALIVUT, an annual Arctic operations exercise.
"Operating in the polar regions has been a 109th Airlift Wing core competency for the better part of 50 years, so assisting in this year's Operation Boxtop is most definitely in the 109th wheelhouse," said Major Gen. Timothy LaBarge, the commander of the New York Air National Guard.
"As we continue to demonstrate our collective abilities and competencies in the polar regions, I believe this effort by the 109th tangibly illustrates our ability to operate and project power in the High North," La Barge said.
This historic resupply mission was conducted relatively late in the fall to help prove that science, logistics and other objectives in the Arctic can be met, according to Vaughan.
"This late season resupply of Canadian Forces Station Alert, the most northern military outpost on Earth, further demonstrates US-Canadian resolve in protecting the Arctic environment," Vaughan said.
The Canadian NORAD Region works with the Continental United States NORAD Region to provide airspace surveillance and control for both countries.
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