2000s
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E10E1 Mission Lieutenant Colonel Marlon Nailling Major John Andrus Major Kathryn Drake Major David Sellars Captain Richard Hunt Captain Kevin Keith Captain Karey Dufour Captain Karin Petersen Captain Donna Fournier First Lieutenant Lucas Jobe Staff Sergeant Edward Franceschina Staff Sergeant Heather Robertson Staff Sergeant Bradley Atherton Staff Sergeant Ryan Reller Staff Sergeant Brian Hoffmeyer Senior Airman Chad Schusko E10E2 Mission Colonel Byron Hepburn Lieutenant Colonel Linda Torrens Major Jonas Allman Major Thomas Jenkins Major Lola Casby Major Jeffrey Davis Captain Raymond Chehy Captain Natalie Sykes Captain Michael Smith Captain Tim Carter First Lieutenant Jennifer Bagozzi Staff Sergeant Alan Wooldridge Staff Sergeant Kelly Pollard Staff Sergeant Trent Arnold Staff Sergeant Juan Garza Senior Airman Anna Duffner Critical Care Air Transport Team Colonel David Welling Major Stephan A. Alkins Captain Raymond M. Nudo Captain Andrew J. Reynolds Captain Bernd T. Wegner Staff Sergeant Chyrise M. Jenkins Staff Sergeant Christopher E. Whited |
For performing heroic rescue efforts in record time for victims of the USS Cole attack during the 6,000 mile round-trip journey between Aden, Yemen, Djibouti, and Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Aircrew members launched two rescue C-9 Nightingale crews within one hour of alert. |
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KNIFE 04 20th Special Operations Squadron First Lieutenant Mike Holder Capt Jay Humphrey Staff Sergeant Vince Depersio Staff Sergeant Chad Ackman Staff Sergeant Mark Wolcott Staff Sergeant Al Aguinaldo Staff Sergeant Paul Orse Staff Sergeant Bill Adams Senior Airman Jason Andrews |
The crew of Knife 04, an MH-53M Pave Low helicopter, distinguished themselves by extraordinary acts of valor and heroism during the rescue of their sister ship’s crew on 02 Nov 01. On that date Knife 04 was chalk two on a short notice tasking for an urgent personnel recovery mission behind enemy lines. Due to severe weather along the route and a radar malfunction in the lead aircraft, Knife 04 assumed lead in an attempt to get the formation clear of the weather. While flying through the blinding weather, the two aircraft lost sight of one another. As Knife 04 tried to relocate their wingman, they lost radio contact. Contacting airborne command and control assets, Knife 04 confirmed that the other aircraft was on the ground. Several attempts to reach the downed crewmembers that had sustained injuries and were now exposed to sub zero temperatures and enemy ground forces were unsuccessful. Knife 04 began coordinating the first of four aerial refuelings and initiated on scene command responsibilities while evading bad weather and taking enemy ground fire. As the weather cleared, Knife 04 located the crash site and began an approach to the rugged area. The extremely slim power margin forced them to dump all but the very minimum fuel required for the approach. After a perilous landing, the downed aircrew were brought aboard. The takeoff in blinding snow with rotor speed decreasing to dangerous levels was accomplished through superior effort and ability from the crew. During the egress from hostile territory, Knife 04 was forced to aerial refuel several times as the minimum power margin prohibited their loading all of the required fuel in one engagement. |
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GRIM 31 16th Special Operations Squadron |
For rescuing 82 U.S. Army soldiers, including 28 wounded, trapped in a rugged valley in Afghanistan by Taliban and Al-Qaeda forces. The 14-man crew of an Air Force AC-130H Spectre gunship engaged the enemy from overhead during a two-hour, night-time operation that permitted two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters to land and pick up the battered troops. |
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Crew of Vijay 10 Lieutenant Colonel Shane Hershman Major Bob Colvin First Lieutenant Matt Clausen Master Sergeant Shawn Brumfield Master Sergeant Chris Dockery |
Vijay 10 was the lead C-17 Globemaster III in a formation of C-17s from the 62d and 446th Airlift Wings, McChord Air Force Base, Washington. Vijay 10's crew led the largest combat airdrop since World War II. On 26 March 2003, Vijay 10 led Operation Northern Delay with an airdrop of 1,000 members of the US Army 173rd Airborne Brigade soldiers over Bashur, Iraq which opened the northern front to combat operations. After the initial insertion, Vijay 10 crewmembers, along with active and reserve crews from Charleston and McChord Air Force Bases flew four more night missions. |
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Crew of Jolly 11 First Lieutenant Bryan Creel Captain Joseph Galletti Staff Sergeant Vincent J. Eckert Staff Sergeant John Griffin Staff Sergeant Patrick Ledbetter Sergeant Thomas Ringheimer Crew of Jolly 12 Captain Rob Wrinkle First Lieutenant Gregory Rockwood Tech Sergeant Michael Preston Tech Sergeant Paul Silver Staff Sergeant Matthew Leigh Staff Sergeant Michael Rubio Senior Airman Edward Ha |
Jolly 11 and Jolly 12 crewmembers distinguished themselves by gallantry in connection with rescue operations near Kharbut, Iraq, on 16 April 2004. While supporting of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Jolly 11 Flight launched to rescue a five person crew of a U.S. Army CH-47 Chinook that crashed in a sandstorm with near zero-visibility. En route to the crash scene, crews realized their forward looking infra-red and night vision goggles were ineffective. Despite this handicap the crew of Jolly 11 was able to locate the survivors. Both aircraft then made near zero-visibility approaches relying nearly exclusively on the flight engineers and aerial gunners inputs for precision navigation. Following the successful survivor contacts and recovery by the Flight’s Pararescuemen, Jolly 11 and Jolly 12 were individually engaged by separate multiple surface-to-air missiles attacks. Using evasive maneuvers Jolly 11 evaded two missiles. Both Jolly 11 and Jolly 12 continued to provide support with defensive fire until the formation was clear of the threat area saving the lives of five U.S. Army personnel. |
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Crew of Train 60 Major Michael S. Frame Major Brian Lewis Master Sergeant Tommy Lee Master Sergeant John Spillane Tech Sergeant Corey Turner |
Train 60 crewmembers were C-130 Hercules instructors for the newly formed Iraqi Air Force. The crew's unprecedented mission was to act as the inaugural Iraqi "Air Force One" and take the Iraq Prime Minister from Baghdad to Al Sulaymania to meet with Kurdish leaders. During the mission, Train 60 crewmembers instructed Iraqi aircrew members on flight procedures in a combat environment, quickly improvised a low-level route through mountains to avoid low ceilings and landed on a taxi way at an uncontrolled and uncompleted Iraqi airfield that did not have an American security presence. Their efforts ensured the safety of the all Iraqi crew and the Iraqi head of state during this landmark airlift event. |
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Captain Scott Markle | A-10 pilot Captain Markle was diverted to support special forces troops along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in contact with Taliban forces. He arrived just before dawn and heavy gunfire and tracers and poor visibility made it difficult to find the team's location. Captain Markle, unable to employ weapons due to the enemy's close proximity to the team, flew a dangerously low pass over the area while releasing self-protection flares. When flares momentarily halted enemy fire. The ground controller requested a few more close passes to the special forces team time to create more distance between themselves and the Taliban. The seporation allowed Captain Markle to strafe the enemy area with more than 1,000 30 millimeter rounds on his final pass. The special forces team was able to disengage with no casualties. Captain Markle was credited with destroying three machine gun nests and killing 40 enemy combatants. |
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Panther 11 Flight Colonel Charles Moore Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Williams Captain Lawrence Sullivan Captain Kristopher Struve |
A 4-ship formation of F-16 Fighting Falcons based at Joint Base Balad, Iraq flew an 11-hour mission over 6 countries and requiring 13 air refuelings supported ground operations in the Tora Bora region of Afghanistan |
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Crew of Bone 23 Major Norman Shelton Captain Kaylene Giri Captain Louis Heidema Captain Boyd Smith |
Confronting a two hundred-strong enemy force that was attempting to overrun their base, the Joint Terminal Attack Controller requested a two thousand pound guided weapon. When the crew of BONE 23 realized friendly forces were in Danger Close range, they suggested a five hundred pound guided weapon, instead. Faced with a critical fuel situation, the crew coordinated to move their tanker closer providing more time on station and, within thirty minutes, BONE 23 accomplished three bomb runs decisively slowing the enemy attack, allowing coalition forces to regroup. |
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Crew of Pedro 16 Captain Robert Rosebrough First Lieutenant Lucas Will Master Sergeant Dustin Thomas Staff Sergeant Tim Philpott |
The crews of "Pedro 15" and "Pedro 16" operating HH-60G Pavehawks came under enemy fire 29 July 2009 during a medical evacuation mission as part of the 129th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron at Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan. Three Soldiers had been wounded near Forward Operating Base Frontenac when their convoy was hit with an improvised explosive device and became engaged by enemy combatants. During the recovery operation "Pedro 15" was downed by enemy fire, injuring the crew. "Pedro 16", along with Army OH-58 Kiowas, suppressed enemy fire. Captain Rosebrough developed a plan to evacuate all the wounded personnel aboard "Pedro 16" and two Kiowa helicopters. Their efforts ensured the recovery of the six "Pedro 15" crew members and three wounded soldiers. |
Read more about this topic: Mackay Trophy, Awardees