Where is Rudolph when you need him?

  • Published
  • By Capt. Heather Garrett
  • 403rd Wing Public Affairs
KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, MISS. --  Loaded up with its human cargo the C-130J waited on the taxiway for its chance to take off into the drizzly sky above on Dec. 11.

What was meant to be a day filled with dropping paratroopers as part of the U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations (Airborne) Randy Oler Memorial Toy Drop, turned into one of disappointment for the six members of 815th and 345th Airlift Squadrons.

As the weather worsened, those on board hoped they would be cleared to complete their mission. However, Mother Nature doesn't always cooperate, and the crew got the call they didn't want to hear: the ceiling was too low, there would be no more drops.

"We were disappointed when we heard the call that we weren't going to be able to drop," said 1st. Lt. Mike Tolzien, 345th AS pilot. "The disappointment we felt wasn't so much for us, but for the paratroopers because for them, being able to jump under the supervision of a foreign jumpmaster is a rare opportunity."

It is a status symbol within the Airborne community to wear an allied or coalition airborne force's jump wings. Earning such wings is only possible when a U.S. military service member participates in a multi-national airborne operation with a foreign-service jumpmaster. Toy Drop not only provides the opportunity to earn foreign jump wings, it allows the U.S. military to train over the skies of Ft. Bragg, N.C. as they would fight in a deployed environment.

"There's a tremendous amount of coordination to get all these different units, all these different planes and all these different paratroopers coming together at the same time to execute an operation," said Army Maj. Gen. David M. Blackledge, U.S. Army CAPOC (Airborne) commander and host of the event. "That's what we do in real-world situations, so this gives us the opportunity to train just as we operate."

Though paratroopers are required to contribute a new, unwrapped toy in order to participate, for many earning foreign jump wings is just a bonus.

"Part of the tradition of Toy Drop is those of us (airborne qualified) who get to jump earn the jump wings of the country our jumpmaster is from," said Tech. Sgt. Wes Bonin, 403rd Wing Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape instructor.

Bonin didn't get a chance to jump due to the weather cancellation. However, that didn't hinder his enthusiasm for participating in Toy Drop.

"Toy Drop is really about the kids toys are collected for," said Bonin whose enthusiam to participate was hindered by not being able to . "I've got 2,300 jumps, so for me being a part of this was knowing that a child will have a good Christmas."

The new, unwrapped toys collected are  distributed to children's homes and social service agencies throughout North Carolina. Despite the operation's name, the collected toys are not dropped out of the aircraft.

Although the crew wasn't able to off-load their human cargo, they echoed Sergeant Bonin's sentiments and prove that Santa will deliver even if Rudolph isn't there to lead the way to the drop zone.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Over 1,300 paratroopers were able to jump Saturday before the ceiling became too low, and more than 6,000 toys are expected to be collected. The mission will continue throughout the week enabling most of the 4,000 participating paratroopers the opportunity to earn foreign jump wings. Donna Miles of the American Forces Press Service contributed to this article.