Operation Assist Santa

  • Published
  • By Arlan Ponder
  • 49th Wing Public Affairs
HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  This year marks another year of aircraft from the base serving as special escorts as the jolly old elf makes his way through New Mexico.

"We are Santa's favorite wing in the Air Force. All the aircraft tails assigned to the 49th Wing are marked with the two letter designation 'H-O'," said Col. Ryan Craycraft, 49th Wing vice commander. "From the moment Santa and his reindeer take off from the North Pole, you can hear him calling for our escort ... 'HO, HO, HO'."

An F-16 will serve as escort, or wingman, while the MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper will provide Santa with "special intelligence" through naughty and nice sensors and sleep detectors installed on the two aircraft. The F-16 has armament options available such as garland/tinsel flares, snow dispersal units and a candy cane payload. The MQ-1 will not only provide path tracking for Santa's sleigh, but identify delivery points through 'naughty and nice' detectors, while the MQ-9 will use its 'sleep detectors' to assist Santa with safe passage into children's (aged 1 to 92) homes.

A special advanced team of elves from the North Pole were brought in to work with the 49th Materiel Maintenance Group, more commonly known as BEAR Base, personnel to provide storage for toys and food for the reindeer.

Personnel from Team Holloman taking part in this year's event include: 54th Maintenance Group ensures all escort aircraft are ready to help Santa and help keep Santa's sleigh in tip-top shape; 49th Security Forces Squadron guards Santa's backup sleigh, while 49th SFS K-9 handlers assist with reindeer control; 49th Logistics Readiness Squadron fuels section handles Santa's highly sensitive "stealth" sleigh fuel; and 49th Operations Support Squadron air traffic controllers ensure the skies are clear for Santa as he goes across New Mexico and the Southwest, as well as providing route de-confliction.
        
"The details of the mission are classified at this time. However, I can say there have been pilots in all three aircraft who have completed special training to make sure all operations are completed safely," said Captain Joel with the 6th Reconnaissance Squadron, who operates the MQ-1 at Holloman. "The MQ-1 is equipped with a naughty or nice sensor to help out Santa with delivering coal and the MQ-9s have a sleep sensor to make sure all the kids are asleep when Santa comes to visit."

Col. Lyle Drew, 49th Maintenance Group commander, said the mission has been of special importance to Holloman for years.

"Throughout our rich history, we've helped Santa make his way across this part of the country at this important time of year for children all across the Southwest," said Drew.

All of the members of Team Holloman taking part in "Operation Assist Santa" have volunteered their time both during the important training required to complete the mission and during the operations on Christmas Eve. Funding for the operation is paid through a special grant from the North Pole.

The "special" mission will serve as a thank you to the residents of the Tularosa Basin and Sacramento Mountains who have supported Team Holloman during 2015. In addition, the mission will serve as a preview of what 2016 will bring.

"With the tremendous amount of support we've received over the past year from the residents of the area, we wanted to ensure this special visitor completes his mission on time," Craycraft said. "As our Airmen know, it is always a good idea to have a wingman when accomplishing any tasks ... especially one as important as a world-wide trip. We work closely with Team Santa at the North Pole to make sure his mission is a complete and total success."