Rescue From Above: 815th Aircrew Evacuates Wounded Army Ranger

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Ryan Labadens
KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  It was supposed to be a routine mission - a simple drop off and pick up flying wounded personnel from a medical facility on one base to another. Routine missions, however, can be anything but routine when serving in a combat zone.

The C-130J-30 pilot and aircraft commander, Capt. Brandon Cowell, and his aircrew received an additional tasking the night of Sept. 16, 2009 - pick up a severely injured Army Ranger from a landing zone and transport him to Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, for emergency medical attention.

Each member of Captain Cowell's crew had previously deployed several times in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. This was their first mission over Afghanistan as part of the same aircrew. On the flight were co-pilot Captain Jeffrey Hicks and loadmasters Senior Master Sgt. Stephen Schaff and Tech. Sgt. David Pirie.

Bandage Mission

It was about two hours into the flight when Captain Hicks received the message from command and control at Al Udeid AB, Qatar, asking if they could pick up the Soldier.

"The mission we were on was actually a bandage mission (or aeromedical evacuation)," said Captain Cowell. "We had an entire entourage of aeromedical personnel in the back of the plane who were transporting patients to Bagram, and then bringing patients back to Al Udeid."

After checking to make sure the medical personnel had the equipment needed to care for the Soldier, Captain Cowell diverted course while Captain Hicks flipped through his data cards to learn more about the landing zone. There wasn't much to go by, he said.

"Most of the time you look at the back of your cards and they give you a description of things to look out for and what's down there. We had the coordinates for the runway and how long it was, but not much else," said Captain Cowell.

The captain knew Sergeant Schaff kept a notebook describing the different areas he deployed to over the years, so he asked the loadmaster if he had been to this location before. As it turned out, he had been there about a year ago with another aircrew - and they had been fired upon.

A True LZ

It was clear that night and very dark; only a quarter moon was visible in the blackness. Mountains surrounded the landing zone to the west, north and east, while ridges and valleys lined the area to the south.

Following procedures, Captain Cowell decided to land on the airstrip covertly, blacking out all the lights on the plane and using night vision goggles to approach the runway.

"It was basically made up of gravel and broken-up concrete - pretty much a true LZ," said Captain Cowell.

"The airfield was small - maybe 4,000 feet long," said Captain Hicks. "That sounds like a lot, but given the angle of the runway and our elevation, it was like having a 2,000-foot runway."

The wind was blowing hard, gusting up to 25 knots. Even though the sky was clear, the air near the landing zone was choked with dust kicked up from the rocky terrain, making visibility more difficult than usual.

"The way the winds were coming in forced us to land going downhill, so we had to use virtually every inch of the runway," said Captain Hicks.

Taking Fire

After landing the plane, Captain Cowell radioed the airfield's tower to find out the exact location of the wounded Soldier.

Given how dark it was, and the fact that all the lights were blacked out on the aircraft, the air traffic controller had a hard time locating the plane.

"She asked us if we wouldn't mind coming out of covert and going to overt," said Captain Hicks. "So we gave one of our lights a quick flash, and she said we needed to come back down (to the other end of the runway)."

Since the landing strip was too narrow to turn around, Captain Cowell threw the plane into reverse. He told Sergeant Pirie to start opening the back cargo ramp so they could receive the wounded Soldier.

Out of the corner of his eye, Captain Hicks saw some flashes nearby. At first he didn't know what to make of them. When he saw them a second time, he realized what they were: muzzle flashes from small arms fire.

"I saw a few (tracer) rounds pass over the cockpit, but realized there was nothing we could do about them. We just had to keep backing up," said Captain Hicks.

When they finally reached the other end of the runway, the aeromedical personnel and ground Army medics loaded the injured Soldier onto the ramp.

"This boy was in bad shape," said Captain Cowell. "The lower half of his body was severely burned from the explosion."

The medics had treated him for burns and wrapped him from the waist down in a space blanket to protect him from hypothermia.

Another Soldier ran up the ramp, asking if everyone was okay. He told the aircrew they had been fired on the entire time the plane was backing up. Even though several rounds zipped over the top the aircraft, not one of them hit the plane.

We Need to Go Now

The other Soldiers informed the aircrew of their efforts to locate the shooter's position and the dangers involved in doing so.

"With all the barbed wire and holes out there, you can't just run out across the field," said Captain Cowell. Mines were another hazard he said they needed to consider.

The medical personnel called Captain Cowell and said they needed to get the Soldier to Bagram AB immediately for treatment.

"The chief medic called me up on my headset and said "We need to go - we need to go now!" said Captain Cowell.

Even with the shooter still out there, the aircrew decided to take off so the injured Ranger could get the care he needed. After receiving clearance, Captain Cowell throttled the engines and took off over the shooter's position.

Once in the air, the crew continued on their mission to safely deliver the wounded Soldier to Bagram.

Medal for Mettle

For the courage they demonstrated that night, each of the four aircrew members received the Air Force Combat Action Medal in April.

"All our people were cool under fire that night," said Captain Cowell. "The level of confidence and teamwork they exhibited was second to none. That made all the difference in getting that Soldier to safety."

Brigadier General James Muscatell, 403rd Wing commander, praised the aircrew for their bravery and the decisive actions they undertook in rescuing the Ranger.

"I am humbled to be part of an organization with such great Americans," said General Muscatell. "Airmen like these are what make our nation great, and their sacrifices are what keep our people free."

Editor's note: Captain Cowell and his aircrew, along with 403rd Wing Reservists from the 815th Airlift Squadron here, were deployed to Al Udeid AB, Qatar, as a part of the 746th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, 379th Air Expeditionary Wing from September 2009 to January 2010.