Niagara Airmen load mobile dental clinic bound for Dominican Republic

Published Aug. 27, 2014
By Staff Sgt. Stephanie Sawyer
914 Airlift Wing/Public Affairs

NIAGARA FALLS AIR RESERVE STATION, N.Y. -- Members of the 30th Aerial Port Squadron here loaded medical equipment onto a C-17 aircraft out of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., August 26, 2014.

A 36-foot motor home, converted into a mobile dental clinic was loaded into the aircraft by members of 30 APS and the McGuire aircrew.

"This was the first time [we've loaded] this type of vehicle on a military aircraft," said Master Sgt. Todd Russell, 30 APS. "We just had to go slow with the whole loading process to ensure all safety precautions were met and that the vehicle was loaded properly without damage to the aircraft or the vehicle itself."

The clinic was donated by the Flying Dentists Association, who provide care to the less fortunate both locally and abroad, and is destined for the Dominican Republic to be utilized in a batey, a migrant workers camp, as well as other small communities in the surrounding area that wouldn't otherwise have access to dental care.

The transport of this medical equipment is part of the Denton Cargo Program, a constitutional amendment which allows the U.S. Armed Forces to provide free transportation of donated goods to areas of need on a space available basis.

"It's a good program for us to be involved with as it allows us more training on real world mission equipment rather than our standard training scenarios that we do," said Russell. "Plus, all the cargo is going to help out people from impoverished countries get medical attention that may otherwise not be available to them."

Dr. Bill Maher and Mr. James Neill are local coordinators for this endeavor and have been involved since 1999.

"None of this could be accomplished without the Air Force," said Dr. Maher.

The mobile dental clinic will service approximately 30,000 people in the Dominican Republic.

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