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Arizona Daily Star (Tucson)
December 29, 2007
Pg. 1
Pilots on '07 Afghanistan deployment flew increased tally of support missions
By Aaron Mackey, Arizona Daily Star
Airmen from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base played a pivotal role in coalition efforts to push the Taliban out of southern Afghanistan in the past year.
D-M pilots flew 1,125 close-air-support missions in Afghanistan when they were deployed earlier this year — nearly a quarter of all such missions flown during the time — and were a part of the largest air assault in the country in the past several years, Air Force figures show.
The increased reliance on air support for ground troops came after the Taliban feigned a mass offensive and began engaging coalition forces more openly, military officials said.
To pre-empt the offensive, coalition forces, led by NATO, called on D-M and its dozens of A-10 attack jets to provide cover for friendly troops as they expelled the Taliban from villages in the southern region of the country.
More than 200 airmen from Tucson's 354th Fighter Squadron flew missions, loaded bombs and provided support. D-M jets engaged in almost 400 clashes with enemy ground forces, killing about 800 Taliban, according to D-M figures.
D-M airmen also deployed to Iraq in the past year, but their contributions there and in Afghanistan weren't limited to combat missions.
More than 1,000 airmen deployed from the base in 2007, serving in a wide range of capacities, from providing security at military installations in combat zones to disarming and destroying homemade bombs.
No D-M personnel were killed.
The base's commander, Col. Kent Laughbaum, said the increased close-air-support missions flown by D-M pilots during the most recent deployment proves that the daily training conducted in Southern Arizona is paying dividends on the battlefield.
"I received very high praise from air commanders in theater about the performance of the 354th Fighter Squadron," he said. "They were very proud of what the squadron had done and thankful that they were there."
The deployment of D-M units to Afghanistan coincided with a noticeable increase in close-air-support missions in the region, figures show.
The 354th was deployed in Afghanistan from April to October, flying close to 1,400 combat missions. Of the total, all but about 250 were close-air-support missions.
At the same time D-M units were in the country, the number of close-air-support missions by all Air Force units in support of Operation Enduring Freedom was markedly higher than what was flown in 2006, Air Force figures show.
In 2006, forces in Afghanistan averaged 600 to 800 close-air-support missions monthly between April and October.
One year later, pilots flew an average of 1,200 close-air-support missions monthly during the same period, with nearly 1,500 missions in May, the most in one month since before 2004, the figures show.
Of the roughly 5,000 close-air-support missions flown in Afghanistan from April to October, D-M pilots participated in about 23 percent.
The spike in close-air-support missions can be attributed to several factors, including intelligence that suggested the Taliban were planning to mount an offensive against coalition forces, said Col. Bruce McClintock, D-M's vice commander who deployed to Afghanistan with the fighter squadron.
The offensive never materialized, and coalition forces pushed south in Afghanistan, working to rid the small villages of Taliban control and restore stability to the region, said Tech. Sgt. Jim Fisher, a D-M spokesman who was deployed to Afghanistan earlier this year.
After clearing the Taliban out of a community, coalition forces were able to bring in construction teams that helped with infrastructure such as building schools and water lines.
Ground commanders also began to rely on close air support more because the Taliban shifted tactics and began going into battle in massive formations, Laughbaum said.
"The desperation that we see in the Taliban led them to do things that contributed to the success that the squadron and the coalition forces enjoyed," Laughbaum said.
To meet the increased mission, crews from D-M had to work around the clock to repair, arm and ready the A-10s for battle, said McClintock, who served as the vice commander for the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing in Afghanistan.
"It was impressive for me — as a 20-year member of the Air Force — to see the level of cooperation and level of effort by all the D-M airmen," he said.
Beyond making sure there were A-10s ready for combat, D-M personnel also helped remove roughly 400 homemade bombs and destroyed 508,000 pounds of explosives. They also participated in more than 300 convoy missions, driving 6.4 million miles in hostile terrain, according to D-M figures.
Speaking of D-M's most visible role in Afghanistan, McClintock said he routinely heard praise for the A-10s from commanders and ground troops.
"It brings a flexibility to the fight that is unrivaled," he said. "The A-10's 30 mm gun gives them capability to employ very, very close to friendly forces."
Capt. Drew Hext, an A-10 pilot who deployed to Afghanistan, also saw and heard the gratitude coalition forces have for D-M's work, though it came from a different level: the front lines.
Hext was a flight leader during the 354th's latest deployment, piloting 89 combat missions.
Working with a controller embedded with ground troops, Hext often fired his weapons on enemies within a few hundred yards of friendly positions.
He recounted one mission in which a group of British troops patrolling north of Kandahar, in southern Afghanistan, came under heavy machine-gun and rocket-propelled-grenade fire from Taliban forces.
After a British controller directed Hext in, he fired on the enemy position, giving the coalition troops time to retreat from what could have been an ambush.
No British troops were killed in the clash, Hext said.
"To hear the British guy's voice at the end of that day, that's why we do it," he said. "When those men and women come under fire, we employ our aircraft to defend them."
Hext said the A-10 patch on his flight suit was a regular conversation starter in mess halls, with troops telling stories about how the jet saved their lives.
"They were elated that the A-10 came back into Afghanistan and sad to see us go," he said.
December 29, 2007
Pg. 1
Pilots on '07 Afghanistan deployment flew increased tally of support missions
By Aaron Mackey, Arizona Daily Star
Airmen from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base played a pivotal role in coalition efforts to push the Taliban out of southern Afghanistan in the past year.
D-M pilots flew 1,125 close-air-support missions in Afghanistan when they were deployed earlier this year — nearly a quarter of all such missions flown during the time — and were a part of the largest air assault in the country in the past several years, Air Force figures show.
The increased reliance on air support for ground troops came after the Taliban feigned a mass offensive and began engaging coalition forces more openly, military officials said.
To pre-empt the offensive, coalition forces, led by NATO, called on D-M and its dozens of A-10 attack jets to provide cover for friendly troops as they expelled the Taliban from villages in the southern region of the country.
More than 200 airmen from Tucson's 354th Fighter Squadron flew missions, loaded bombs and provided support. D-M jets engaged in almost 400 clashes with enemy ground forces, killing about 800 Taliban, according to D-M figures.
D-M airmen also deployed to Iraq in the past year, but their contributions there and in Afghanistan weren't limited to combat missions.
More than 1,000 airmen deployed from the base in 2007, serving in a wide range of capacities, from providing security at military installations in combat zones to disarming and destroying homemade bombs.
No D-M personnel were killed.
The base's commander, Col. Kent Laughbaum, said the increased close-air-support missions flown by D-M pilots during the most recent deployment proves that the daily training conducted in Southern Arizona is paying dividends on the battlefield.
"I received very high praise from air commanders in theater about the performance of the 354th Fighter Squadron," he said. "They were very proud of what the squadron had done and thankful that they were there."
The deployment of D-M units to Afghanistan coincided with a noticeable increase in close-air-support missions in the region, figures show.
The 354th was deployed in Afghanistan from April to October, flying close to 1,400 combat missions. Of the total, all but about 250 were close-air-support missions.
At the same time D-M units were in the country, the number of close-air-support missions by all Air Force units in support of Operation Enduring Freedom was markedly higher than what was flown in 2006, Air Force figures show.
In 2006, forces in Afghanistan averaged 600 to 800 close-air-support missions monthly between April and October.
One year later, pilots flew an average of 1,200 close-air-support missions monthly during the same period, with nearly 1,500 missions in May, the most in one month since before 2004, the figures show.
Of the roughly 5,000 close-air-support missions flown in Afghanistan from April to October, D-M pilots participated in about 23 percent.
The spike in close-air-support missions can be attributed to several factors, including intelligence that suggested the Taliban were planning to mount an offensive against coalition forces, said Col. Bruce McClintock, D-M's vice commander who deployed to Afghanistan with the fighter squadron.
The offensive never materialized, and coalition forces pushed south in Afghanistan, working to rid the small villages of Taliban control and restore stability to the region, said Tech. Sgt. Jim Fisher, a D-M spokesman who was deployed to Afghanistan earlier this year.
After clearing the Taliban out of a community, coalition forces were able to bring in construction teams that helped with infrastructure such as building schools and water lines.
Ground commanders also began to rely on close air support more because the Taliban shifted tactics and began going into battle in massive formations, Laughbaum said.
"The desperation that we see in the Taliban led them to do things that contributed to the success that the squadron and the coalition forces enjoyed," Laughbaum said.
To meet the increased mission, crews from D-M had to work around the clock to repair, arm and ready the A-10s for battle, said McClintock, who served as the vice commander for the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing in Afghanistan.
"It was impressive for me — as a 20-year member of the Air Force — to see the level of cooperation and level of effort by all the D-M airmen," he said.
Beyond making sure there were A-10s ready for combat, D-M personnel also helped remove roughly 400 homemade bombs and destroyed 508,000 pounds of explosives. They also participated in more than 300 convoy missions, driving 6.4 million miles in hostile terrain, according to D-M figures.
Speaking of D-M's most visible role in Afghanistan, McClintock said he routinely heard praise for the A-10s from commanders and ground troops.
"It brings a flexibility to the fight that is unrivaled," he said. "The A-10's 30 mm gun gives them capability to employ very, very close to friendly forces."
Capt. Drew Hext, an A-10 pilot who deployed to Afghanistan, also saw and heard the gratitude coalition forces have for D-M's work, though it came from a different level: the front lines.
Hext was a flight leader during the 354th's latest deployment, piloting 89 combat missions.
Working with a controller embedded with ground troops, Hext often fired his weapons on enemies within a few hundred yards of friendly positions.
He recounted one mission in which a group of British troops patrolling north of Kandahar, in southern Afghanistan, came under heavy machine-gun and rocket-propelled-grenade fire from Taliban forces.
After a British controller directed Hext in, he fired on the enemy position, giving the coalition troops time to retreat from what could have been an ambush.
No British troops were killed in the clash, Hext said.
"To hear the British guy's voice at the end of that day, that's why we do it," he said. "When those men and women come under fire, we employ our aircraft to defend them."
Hext said the A-10 patch on his flight suit was a regular conversation starter in mess halls, with troops telling stories about how the jet saved their lives.
"They were elated that the A-10 came back into Afghanistan and sad to see us go," he said.