305th displays airpower; set to host ‘Elephant Walk’ Published Dec. 19, 2011 Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs Office JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- Residents living on or near Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst may be exposed to increased aircraft operations due to a large scale training mission Tuesday morning here. The 305th Air Mobility Wing is set to host its first 'Elephant Walk' in five years. Members are set to launch eight KC-10 aircraft, one right after another, within a 30-minute time period. This event displays the wing's mission readiness-capabilities while showcasing Air Mobility Command's operations, maintenance and support personnel. 'Elephant Walk' is a unique Air Force term introduced during World War II, eventually becoming a part of the Air Force's institutional language. The Army Air Corps' large fleet of bombers would regularly conduct attacks by sorties comprising more than 1,000 aircraft. Observers commented that the nose-to-tail, single-file taxi movements of the heavily-laden bombers paralleled the nose-to-tail trail of lumbering elephants on their way to the next watering hole. The term stuck - and was even used to define maximum aircraft surge operations in Air Force regulations.