62nd AW earns AF Outstanding Unit Award

  • Published
  • By Airman Leah Young
  • 62nd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
The 62nd Airlift Wing has been awarded the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award for meritorious service from Sep. 12, 2008 to Sep. 11, 2010.

The 62nd AW was named Air Mobility Command's hardest flying mobility wing. It held the highest use rate of C-17 Globemaster III units, averaging 127.6 hours per day.

Squadrons which fall under the 62nd AW won a number of awards, including AMC's 2009 Financial Services Office of the Year, Air Force 2008 Small Contracting Squadron of the Year, AMC's 2008 and 2009 Gen. Curtis E. Lemay Award for Best Large Force Support Squadron and AMC's 2008 Aerospace Medical Team of the Year.

It was also named AMC's 2008 and 2009 Number One Safety Office and Best Nuclear Program in the Air Force.

The 62nd AW is AMC's only Antarctic qualified wing, and in 2009, air crews flew 113 Operation Deep Freeze missions. These missions included delivering more than seven million pounds of cargo to the most hostile environment on Earth.

In 2010, the Wing hosted the largest Joint Base Air Expo in Air Force history, which housed more than 250,000 guests during the three-day event.

During the Air Expo, the 361st Recruiting Squadron set a new national and Air Force record when Col. Kevin Kilb, 62nd AW commander, swore in 201 enlistees at the same time.

The 62nd AW has also made a large humanitarian impact. Airlift crews assisted in various Haiti and Pakistan relief efforts, as well as being the sole AMC American Samoa relief effort for tsunami victims.

"This award is well deserved and I'm extremely proud of the men and women of the 62nd Airlift Wing and what they have accomplished," said Col. Kevin Kilb, 62nd AW commander. "This recognition during our high operations tempo shows our dedication to excellence."

Airmen stationed at JBLM during the award period are authorized to wear the Outstanding Unit ribbon or add one additional cluster to their ribbon.