What are we doing in Honduras anyway?
Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras
Joint Task Force-Bravo is located at Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras. JTF-Bravo is comprised of approximately 550 US military personnel and more than 650 US and Honduran civilians. They work in six different areas including the Joint Staff, Air Force Forces (612th Air Base Squadron), Army Forces, Joint Security Forces and the Medical Element. 1st Battalion, 228th Aviation Regiment, a US Army South asset, is a tenant unit also based at Soto Cano. The J-Staff provides command and control for JTF-B.
The Air Force Forces has among its functions; weather forecasting, fire protection, and maintaining a 24-hour C-5-capable runway. The Army Forces operate finance, food service and transportation. Joint Security Forces is comprised of Air Force, Army and Marine force protection personnel who patrol the base and downtown areas frequented by US servicemembers.
Health care services are performed by the Medical Element. The 1st Battalion, 228th Aviation Regiment performs a variety of airlift support missions throughout Central and South America with UH-60 Black Hawk and CH-47 Chinook helicopters. US forces are guests here on the base which is the home of the Honduran Air Force Academy.
As early as 1965, the US and Honduran Armed Forces conducted combined training exercises. In 1983, the number and size of these exercises increased when the US, at the request of the Honduran Government, began maintaining a visible military presence in the face of threats from foreign forces. This initial joint force was designated JTF-11. Since 1983, the joint task force has provided support for joint and combined training exercises involving active and reserve components. The location and climate of Honduras combine to provide US military members an opportunity to train in an overseas, semi-tropical, austere environment.
The task force also oversees Operation New Horizons — civil engineer training missions that build new schools, bridges, wells and other infrastructure projects in underdeveloped regions of Central America, as well as assisting US forces in providing humanitarian assistance. Additionally, Soto Cano stages and arranges regular medical readiness training exercises throughout Central America — dispatching doctors, dentists and nurses to remote regions to treat locals, some of whom have never received modern medical care.