TIME Magazine Honors Airman At New York City Gala
(May 9, 2010) |
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Chief Master Sgt. Antonio Travis conducts an interview for AF.mil and the Pentagon Channel May 4, 2010, at Times Square in New York City. Chief Travis was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by the editors of TIME magazine for his efforts following the Haiti earthquake. |
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NEW YORK (5/5/2010 - AFNS) -- The editors of TIME magazine
honored Chief Master Sgt. Antonio D. Travis as one of the
100 most influential people in the world for his efforts
following the Haiti earthquake. He was recognized May 4
during the 2010 TIME 100 gala event at New York City's
Lincoln Center.
Chief Travis was one of the first U.S. military members on
the ground at the Toussaint L'Ouverture International
Airport in Port au Prince, Haiti, only 30 hours after the
earthquake and less than 12 hours after the nation's
president requested U.S. assistance. The chief led a team of
special tactics Airmen from the 23rd, 21st and 123rd special
tactics squadrons.
With his team of combat veterans, Chief Travis led the
largest single-runway operation in history, using hand-held
radios to control thousands of |
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aircraft. Their air traffic control tower was a card table set up
next to the airport's runway. |
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"Twenty-eight minutes after touchdown, we controlled the
first air landing followed immediately by a departure, and
we did not slow down for the next 12 days," said Chief
Travis, who hails from Nelson County, Ky.
After establishing control of the airfield there, his team
orchestrated an orderly flow for incoming aircraft and dealt
with the constraints of the inadequate airfield, which
potentially could have limited relief operations. Facing 42
aircraft jammed into a parking ramp designed to accommodate
10 large planes, untangling the gridlock was the first of
many seemingly insurmountable challenges necessary to
facilitate the flood of inbound relief flights.
"I'm the figurehead for the 224 Airman participating in
Operation Unified Response," said Chief Travis of his
selection to be honored by the TIME magazine editors. "This
honor is for the men and women from the 1st Special
Operations Wing and more importantly, Air Force Special
Operations Command, who went down there."
The TIME list, now in its seventh year, recognizes the
activism, innovation and achievement of the world's most
influential individuals.
As TIME's managing editor Rick Stengel has said of the list
in the past, "The TIME 100 is not a list of the most
powerful people in the world, it's not a list of the
smartest people in the world, it's a list of the most
influential people in the world. They're scientists, they're
thinkers, they're philosophers, they're leaders, they're
icons, they're artists, they're visionaries. They're people
who are using their ideas, their visions, their actions to
transform the world and have an effect on a multitude of
people."
The TIME 100 Gala was headlined by guest speaker former
President Bill Clinton with a musical performance by Prince.
Also in attendance were honorees and celebrities including
Sarah Palin, Sir Richard Branson, Sir Elton John, Taylor
Swift, Katherine Bigelow, Oliver Stone, Neil Patrick Harris
and Betty White.
The full 2010 TIME 100 list and related tributes of all
those honored will appear in the May 10 issue available on
newsstands and online. (Maj. David Small, National Media
Outreach Office, contributed to this article.) |
Article and photo by USAF SSgt. Bennie J. Davis III
Defense Media Activity-San Antonio
Copyright 2010 | |
Reprinted from
Air Force News
Service
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