Air Force Special Operations Command recently released the names and pictures of the airmen killed along with 27 other US troops, seven Afghans, and a civilian interpreter Aug. 6 when their CH-47 Chinook was shot down in the Maiden Wardak province in eastern Afghanistan. They are: pararescueman TSgt. John W. Brown, pararescueman TSgt. Daniel L. Zerbe, and combat controller SSgt. Andrew W. Harvell. All three airmen were assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron at Pope Field, N.C. (AFSOC release)
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
