Christmas comes early for remote Pacific islanders

For thousands of people living on some of the most remote islands in the Pacific, Santa drives a United States military C-130J Super Hercules.

For nearly 70 years, the US military and its allies, including New Zealand and Australia, have provided essential supplies to these islands each Christmas holiday season.

Remote Pacific islanders await Operation Christmas Drop. Photo/US Department of Defense

Operation Christmas Drop (OCD) is the US Department of Defense's longest-running humanitarian airlift operation. New Zealand last participated in this initiative in 2022.

Andersen Air Force Base in Guam is the base camp for Christmas Drop.

Supplies are delivered to 56 islands in the Northern Marianas, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), and Palau. The most recent drop occurred last week.

For the residents of these remote islands, Christmas is marked by the sound of C-130s roaring overhead as boxes filled with food, clothing, toys, and other items are parachuted from the planes.

Operation Christmas Drop began during the holiday season in 1952 as a spur-of-the-moment decision by a B-29 Superfortress crew.

The history

The operation started during the Christmas season of 1951 when a B-29 Superfortress aircrew saw islanders waving at them on Kapingamarangi in the FSM.

In the spirit of Christmas, the aircrew quickly gathered some supplies, attached them to a parachute, and dropped them for the islanders below.

This event led to the formal operation in 1952. To this day, the operation serves as a valuable training exercise for the US Air Force, allowing aircrews to practise humanitarian airdrops, which could be used in future deployments or during natural disasters.

While Christmas Drop is a military operation, most supplies come from volunteers.

Over the years, Operation Christmas Drop has become a cherished tradition in the Pacific, with even the most remote islands eagerly awaiting it.

The islanders collect their supplies dropped down by the US-led Christmas Drop mission. Photos/US Air Force/PACOM

How it works

Throughout the year, the organisation collects funds and donations.

In the months leading up to the drop, volunteers set up donation drop-off boxes and raise funds from local businesses and residents.

A week before the drop, military personnel, civilians, contractors, and families work together to collect and sort the donations.

Once sorted, riggers volunteer to assemble dozens of boxes to hold the supplies.

These boxes are then loaded onto the planes, and the aircrews depart for their designated destinations.

Once they reach the islands, they radio communicate with the local villages to coordinate the drop.

Operation Christmas Drop (OCD) is the US Department of Defense's longest-running humanitarian airlift mission. Photos/US Air Force/PACOM