(Right) Staff Sgt. Titus Kiem, 319th Logistics Readiness Squadron water and fuels expediter, along with Transient Alert Air Craft servicer John Winter and Transient Alert Air Craft project manager Larry Crouch prepare to refuel one of three F-18 Hornets from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 on Sept. 16, 2014, at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota. Nearly a dozen of Marine Corps pilots and aircraft made pit stops at Grand Forks AFB in order to rest and refuel while on their way to their home station of Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina. Marine Corps aircraft are a rare site at Grand Forks AFB. The base’s zero manned aircraft operations allows the base to serve as safe haven for aircraft during severe weather in other parts of the country, such as aircraft that were evacuated from the east coast during Super Storm Sandy. This also allows the base to serve as a refueling and resting point for aircraft and crews traveling across the country. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)
(Center) Airman 1st Class Jason Clever and Staff Sgt. Titus Kiem from the 319th Logistics Readiness Squadron water and fuels flight setup the next stage for refueling an F-18 Hornet with the help of Transient Alert Air Craft servicer John Winter and Transient Alert Air Craft project manager Larry Crouch Sept. 16, 2014, at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota. Nearly a dozen of the Marine Corps pilots and aircraft made pit stops at Grand Forks AFB in order to rest and refuel while on their way to their home station of Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)
An F-18 Hornet from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 sits on the flightline at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota. Sept.16, 2014. The aircraft was used in support of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan. Nearly a dozen of the Marine Corps pilots and aircraft made pit stops at Grand Forks AFB in order to rest and refuel while on their way to their home station of Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina. The F-18 Hornet is a twin-engine supersonic, all-weather carrier-capable multirole combat jet, designed as both a fighter and attack aircraft. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)
Transient Alert Air Craft servicer John Winter and Airmen from the 319th Logistics Readiness Squadron water and fuels flight prepare to pump jet fuel into an F-18 Hornet from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 Sept. 16, 2014, at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota. Nearly a dozen of the Marine Corps pilots and aircraft made pit stops at Grand Forks AFB in order to rest and refuel. It took approximately 1,700 gallons to fill up each of the aircraft. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)
A C-17 Globemaster III from Elmendorf, Alaska, taxis next to an F-18 from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota. Sept. 16, 2014. The C-17 helped transport members from the VMFA-122, who were on a return trip home to Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina. The Marines completed their tour in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)
Patrolmen from the 319th Security Forces Squadron at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, position their vehicle to provide security for a C-17 Globemaster III from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Sept. 16, 2014. The Airmen from the 319th SFS protected the aircraft while other Warriors of the North refill their fuel tanks, allowing more than two dozen Marines to continue their journey home to Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)
U.S. Marines stretch their legs after the C-17 Globemaster III giving them a lift to their home base of Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina, makes a pit stop at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, Sept. 16, 2014. The C-17 transported more than two dozen Marines from Afghanistan to South Carolina. The aircraft is assigned to the 176th Wing, a unit of the Alaska Air National Guard, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)
Airmen and Air Force civilian contractors from Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, refuel a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III assigned to the 176th Wing, a unit of the Alaska Air National Guard, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson on the base flightline Sept. 16, 2014. The C-17 transported more than two dozen Marines from Afghanistan to South Carolina. The return flight of this C-17 was seen as a joint endeavor between Airmen from the Alaska Air National Guard and active-duty Airmen from Grand Forks AFB designed to help Marines from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 to get home after concluding operations in Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Luis Loza Gutierrez)