“The munitions that we received will be used for future theater operations and the evolving U.S. European Command presence.”

The 86th Munitions Squadron (MUNS) on Ramstein Air Base, Germany, received its largest shipment of ordnance in recent history. As told by Senior Airman Joshua Magbanua, 86th Airlift Wing Public Affairs, in his article Armed and Ready: Ramstein receives largest ammo shipment in years, approximately 100 containers with a variety of munitions rolled into Ramstein during the month of October.

Master Sgt. David Head, 86th MUNS Munitions Operations section chief, noted that a delivery of such magnitude has not taken place since the late 20th century.

“This is the largest shipment of its kind since Operation Allied Force, which took place in 1999,” he said, referring to a 78-day campaign where aircraft flew 900 sorties to counter ethnic cleansing in Eastern Europe. “The munitions that we received will be used for future theater operations and the evolving U.S. European Command presence.”

(This article by Dario Leone originally appeared on The Aviation Geek Club in 2018.)

Master Sgt. Arthur Myrick, 86th MUNS munitions flight chief, added that the stockpile would be used to support NATO’s European Deterrence Initiative (EDI) and augment the Air Force’s War Reserve Materiel in Europe.

According to officials, EDI aims to increase responsiveness and readiness by pre-positioning ammunition, fuel and equipment to enhance the U.S. Department of Defense’s ability to provide a rapid response against threats made by aggressive actors.

Myrick expounded on the importance of his squadron’s role in the Air Force’s global operations.

“We’re a major airlift hub for U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa, so our main job is to get munitions where they need to be on time,” he said. “These are real-world munitions to fulfill real-world objectives. That’s the reason we are downloading these things: to make sure we have the capability to move the fight forward if need be.”