Deployed cyberspace engineers support Haiti, Chile relief efforts Published June 17, 2010 By John Stuart Tinker Public Affairs TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- As the world watched television coverage of the devastation in Haiti and then the earthquake in Chile, several Tinker 38th Cyberspace Engineering Group personnel were actively getting their hands dirty in support of the relief efforts. Now, some six months after the 7.0 earthquake in Haiti and the 8.8 February quake in Chile, there's little these three Tinker engineers aren't ready for. In March, K.J. Janjua, Tony Clayborn and Capt. Jose Linares volunteered to help U.S. Southern Command Headquarters as augmentees to assist in the relief efforts in Haiti and then Chile. Captain Linares forward deployed to Haiti while Janjua and Mr. Clayborn remained in the Miami facility to offer their expertise. Captain Linares is a theater communications engineer assigned to the Joint Task Force Haiti, providing communications solutions and support to the some 1,500 troops there who are specifically tasked with the job of monitoring and building of resettlement camps to ensure the safety of residents While in Port-au-Prince, Captain Linares has also made several trips with fellow Airmen to the nearby Foyer L'escale Orphanage, to deliver clothing, toys and to play with the kids, who have gone without basic provisions since the earthquake. "I think we did something good for the kids," Captain Linares said. "I think the kids are going to appreciate the toys, candy, and the clothes we brought. It breaks your heart. You get to play with them, you get to run with them and then you have to leave. It's tough." To say the experience has been diverse for the trio would be an understatement. Mr. Clayborn and Mr. Janjua each have different specialties, but have both been stretched in terms of what they've had to learn. "Right now I don't feel like there's any project in the government that I could get that I couldn't handle here," Mr. Clayborn said. "It's seldom you get such a diverse group of skills to learn on a single trip." Their job is broad in that they provide numerous communication solutions to help troops operate in relief zones. At its height, they were part of a 500-person team that ensured communication channels and frequencies were available to the some 22,000 American troops on the ground in Haiti. This support team provided troops with services such as secure and unsecure Internet, video conferencing, data transmission lines and phone services, among others. "That's why I volunteered to go, once I heard what was happening in the news," Mr. Janjua said. "Once I came down here and saw it firsthand it was great to help them and help the troops support the Haiti people." In Chile, the mission demanded that these same services be provided to about 80 SOUTHCOM troops on the ground, who assisted in the relief operations. The majority of Mr. Clayborn and Mr. Janjua's efforts focused on supporting communications for MRE distribution and emergency hospitals that treated up to 75 patients per day in Angol, Chile. "Both of them have been eye opening experience," Mr. Janjua said. "It is basically a humanitarian mission so you can't go wrong. We're there to really help the people, there's no doubt." Although relief efforts in Haiti are scheduled to continue on until sometime this fall, Mr. Clayborn and Mr. Janjua will return to Tinker in August. But before they return they're also giving valuable input into the restructuring of the communications portion of a 630,425 square feet SOUTHCOM facility in Miami. While their mission in Miami and Haiti demands much of them, the Tinker engineers are anything but regretful they volunteered. "It's a humanitarian effort. You're helping people get over a bad situation. It's a win-win for us in all aspects," Mr. Clayborn said. Portions of this article appeared in The Responder's May 10 edition in a story by Cpl. Jake Marlin.