730th AMS Det 2 ushers in the historic 2018 Summit in Singapore

  • Published
  • By Capt. Krystal Jimenez
  • 618th Air Operations Center Public Affairs
PAYA LEBAR AIR BASE, Singapore --  

On June 10,  President Donald J. Trump landed at Paya Lebar Air Base in Singapore for the first meeting between a sitting U.S. president and the sitting leader of North Korea.

Seventeen C-17s flew through the Singaporean air base for two weeks leading up to the historic summit, ushered in by a small Air Mobility Command detachment.

The 730th Air Mobility Squadron Detachment 2 out of Paya Lebar AB in Singapore houses three active-duty Airmen and 22 contractors in support of Air Mobility Command’s rapid global mobility mission.

“In order to support the monumental 2018 Singapore Summit, our 25 total-force Airmen worked tirelessly to offload over 300 support personnel and 369 tons of equipment,” stated Capt. Chris Gray, 730th AMS Det. 2 commander. “This included Marine One, presidential limousines and U.S. Navy patrol boats.”

Gray, Senior MSgt. Jeffrey Ritenour, 730th AMS Det. 2 maintenance superintendent, and Master Sgt. Herbert Cabling, 730th AMS Det. 2 aerial port superintendent, served as liaisons for the White House Movement Office, White House Communications Agency, Secret Service and Air Force One Advance Agents to the Republic of Singapore Air Force and Singaporean Customs.

“When various agencies had specific mission requirements our team was flexible and provided innovative solutions to enable the mission to continue,” said Cabling. “We repurposed an aircraft loader as a high rise platform for the secret service counter-sniper team and worked with the white house press representatives to supply and set up light carts which allowed media from around the world to capture the President’s arrival.”

The team leveraged their established relations with the local military to facilitate a smooth arrival and departure for the President Trump to an AMC, en-route location.

“As the world watched the President of the United States negotiate a nuclear peace promise with the leader of North Korea, our team of 25 personnel prepared to redeploy all the assets that had just arrived,” said Gray.