U.S. Air Force Maj. Zach “Badger” Overbey, Operation Christmas Drop 2023 (OCD 23) mission commander and pilot, taxis a 36th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron C-130J Super Hercules carrying aid bound for the islanders of Koror, to begin the first flight of OCD 23 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 3, 2023. OCD is the Department of Defense’s longest-running humanitarian airlift operation. The tradition began during the Christmas season in 1952 when a B-29 Superfortress aircrew saw islanders waving at them from the island of Kapingamarangi, 3,500 miles southwest of Hawaii. In the spirit of Christmas, the aircrew dropped a bundle of supplies attached to a parachute to the islanders below, giving the operation its name. Today, airdrop operations include more than 50 islands throughout the Pacific. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Taylor Altier)