Despite bitter temperatures that can cause frostbite in minutes, air mobility warplanes continue to climb slowly out of the mist and sub-freezing haze that cloaks Kyrgyzstan on their way to missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). Manas Air Base is the primary mobility hub for OEF, providing around-the-clock aerial refueling, combat airlift and airdrop, and aeromedical evacuation throughout Afghanistan. If the airmen here let the brutal weather slow them down, then forward-deployed ground units might not receive crucial supplies, wounded patriots might be delayed en route to medical care and combat aircraft might not have the fuel needed to conduct their missions.
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