Connecticut sends airmen, cargo plane to Puerto Rico

HARTFORD, Conn. – Connecticut is sending a cargo plane and eight airmen from the state’s National Guard to Puerto Rico to help in the relief effort following Hurricane Irma.

Democratic Governor Dannel P. Malloy says the unit, from the guard’s 103rd Airlift Wing in East Granby, will include pilots and crews who specialize in loading and delivering cargo from the C-130 Hercules aircraft.

They left Saturday morning to pick up supplies from another location before heading on to Puerto Rico, where they will remain for potential follow-up missions.

There is no timetable for their return, and the governor says the state is preparing for any additional deployment requests.

A C-130 plane and crew recently returned from Texas, where it participated in a similar mission following Hurricane Harvey.