Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Patrick Holmes, Pacific Air Forces command first sergeant, left, and Chief Master Sgt. Katie McCool, Pacific Air Forces command chief, ride in the back of a C-130J Super Hercules during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 over the Pacific Ocean, Dec. 10, 2024. Conducted annually from Andersen, OCD delivers around 82,000 pounds of supplies and gifts in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, benefiting over 42,000 islanders while covering approximately 1.8 million square miles of airspace. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Peter Nguyen, Aircrew Flight Equipment Journeyman, left, shakes hands with Chief Master Sgt. Katie McCool, Pacific Air Forces command chief, after being coined for excellent performance during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 10, 2024. 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 over 58 islands throughout the Pacific. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Katie McCool, Pacific Air Forces command chief, looks at the Operation Christmas Drop 2024 merchandise during OCD 24 at the Deployment Operations Center at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 10, 2024. Conducted annually from Andersen, OCD delivers around 82,000 pounds of supplies and gifts in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, benefiting over 42,000 islanders while covering approximately 1.8 million square miles of airspace. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Alexander Clark, 36th Airlift Squadron loadmaster, waves after delivering a bundle to a Micronesian Island in the back of a C-130J Super Hercules during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 over the Pacific Ocean, Dec. 10, 2024. Conducted annually from Andersen, OCD delivers around 82,000 pounds of supplies and gifts in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, benefiting over 42,000 islanders while covering approximately 1.8 million square miles of airspace. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Patrick Holmes, Pacific Air Forces command first sergeant, left, and Chief Master Sgt. Katie McCool, Pacific Air Forces command chief, speak to Airmen during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 at the Deployment Operations Center at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 10, 2024. 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 over 58 islands throughout the Pacific. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

From left, U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Case A. Cunningham, Alaskan Command, Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region and Eleventh Air Force commander, speaks with Lt. Col. Matthew Buchholtz, commander of the 36th Airlift Squadron at Yokota Air Base, Japan, and Capt. Miranda Bapty, Operation Christmas Drop commander, during OCD 2024 at the Deployment Operations Center at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 8, 2024. Conducted annually from Andersen, OCD delivers around 82,000 pounds of supplies and gifts in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, benefiting over 42,000 islanders while covering approximately 1.8 million square miles of airspace. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

Japan Air Self Defense Force Maj. Gen. SAGAWA Shoji, left, Air Support Command deputy commander, and U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. John Schutte, Fifth Air Force deputy commander from Yokota Air Base, Japan, speak to each other during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 8, 2024. Conducted annually from Andersen, OCD delivers around 82,000 pounds of supplies and gifts in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, benefiting over 42,000 islanders while covering approximately 1.8 million square miles of airspace. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. John Schutte, left, Fifth Air Force deputy commander from Yokota Air Base, Japan, and Lt. Col. Matt Buchholtz, 36th Airlift Squadron commander from the 374th Airlift Wing at Yokota Air Base, Japan, walk down a hallway at the Deployment Operations Center during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 8, 2024. 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 58 islands throughout the Pacific. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. John Schutte, left, Fifth Air Force deputy commander from Yokota Air Base, Japan, sits with pilots and leaders from the 374th Airlift Wing at the Deployment Operations Center during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 8, 2024. Conducted annually from Andersen, OCD delivers around 82,000 pounds of supplies and gifts in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, benefiting over 42,000 islanders while covering approximately 1.8 million square miles of airspace. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Katie McCool, Pacific Air Forces command chief, speaks with 36th Airlift Squadron C-130J Super Hercules pilots after a flight during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Dec. 10, 2024. 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 over 58 islands throughout the Pacific. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Jarrett Smith)

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Distinguished Visitors Experience OCD 24

Published Dec. 10, 2024
By Senior Airman Jarrett Smith
374th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

ANDERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Guam --

Distinguished Visitors from Fifth Air Force, Pacific Air Forces, and Alaskan Command visited Anderson Air Force Base during Operation Christmas Drop 2024 Dec 8-10.

U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. John Schutte, Fifth Air Force deputy commander from Yokota Air Base, Japan, Lt. Gen. Case A. Cunningham, Alaskan Command, Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region and Eleventh Air Force commander, Chief Master Sgt. Patrick Holmes, Pacific Air Forces command first sergeant, Chief Master Sgt. Katie McCool, Pacific Air Forces command chief, and Japan Air Self Defense Force Maj. Gen. SAGAWA Shoji, Air Support Command deputy commander, visited the OCD team and flew on the C-130J Super Hercules to see the operations first-hand.

OCD delivers around 82,000 pounds of supplies and gifts in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, benefiting over 42,000 islanders while covering approximately 1.8 million square miles of airspace.