Lance Cpl. Scott Buzzetta ensures that a pallet is correctly fastened for loading onto a Marine Corps C130-J cargo plane Monday. Three Marine Corps C130-J cargo planes left Monday headed for Naval Air Facility Atsugi and Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni to assist with humanitarian relief efforts. (Matt Orr/Stars and Stripes)
Lance Cpl. Scott Buzzetta ensures that a pallet is correctly fastened for loading onto a Marine Corps C130-J cargo plane Monday. Three Marine Corps C130-J cargo planes left Monday headed for Naval Air Facility Atsugi and Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni to assist with humanitarian relief efforts. (Matt Orr/Stars and Stripes)
MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FUTENMA, Okinawa ? Marines from 7th Communications Battalion get ready to board a Marine Corps C130-J cargo plane bound for Naval Air Facility Atsugi. Their mission once they land is to set up communications at a new command post for III Marine Expeditionary Force Forward Command Element. Once the command post has been set up and communications established the III MEF command element will move operations to NAF Atsugi. (Matt Orr/Stars and Stripes)
MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FUTENMA, Okinawa ? Marines from 7th Communications Battalion walk to a Marine Corps C130-J cargo plane bound for Naval Air Facility Atsugi. The 30 Marines will set up communications at a new command post for the III Marine Expeditionary Force Forward Command Element when they land. (Matt Orr/Stars and Stripes)
MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FUTENMA, Okinawa ? Marine Cpl. Aaron Martinez sits atop a pallet of generators that is set to be loaded into a Marine Corps C130-J cargo plane. Three Marine Corps C-130J cargo planes departed MCAS Futenma Monday, bound for Naval Air Facility Atsugi and MCAS Iwakuni loaded with Marines and gear needed to assist with humanitarian relief efforts. (Matt Orr/Stars and Stripes)
MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FUTENMA, Okinawa — Relief support from Okinawa continued Monday afternoon as three Marine Corps C-130J cargo planes departed here bound for Naval Air Facility Atsugi and Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni.
One of the cargo planes that departed for Atsugi was packed with pallets of generators, fuel containers, water and fuel containers, air conditioners, communication gear, as well as 30 Marines from 7th Communications Battalion.
The Marines were to set up a new command post for III Marine Expeditionary Forces Forward Command Element at Atsugi, officials said.
Currently the element is located at Yokota Air Base.
Marine Corps Master Sgt. John Pellicore, communications chief for battalion, said it would take 12-18 hours to set up communications in the command post, to include telephone, Internet and e-mail capabilities.
There was no set date as to when the command element would move to the new command post.
“I haven’t personally been involved in humanitarian missions like this before, but this is exactly what the Marines of this unit are trained for,” said Pellicore.
