Two Air Force rescue squadrons recently received the the Presidential Unit Citation award for heroism displayed during the evacuation of Afghanistan, according to a May 10 announcement from Air Combat Command.
During an April 17 ceremony at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., the 55th and 48th Rescue Squadrons accepted the honors on behalf of the 66th and 58th Rescue Squadrons, both of which have since been deactivated since their actions in 2021. The units were part of a 176-member Personnel Recovery Task Force that evacuated U.S. and Afghan noncombatants.
In the final days of the U.S. military’s Operation Resolute Support, Afghanistan was on the verge of collapsing to Taliban forces. In mid-July, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III ordered the Air Force PRTF to Hamid Karzai International Airport. In the chaotic days that followed, the diverse team of Air Force pilots, maintainers, intelligence personnel, and special warfare Airmen had to set up their own security and communications from scratch, according to the announcement.
Between July 16 and Aug. 31, the task force saved more than 1,900 Americans and Afghans and established a safe evacuation path for more than 12,000 additional Afghan refugees, the announcement states.
The Presidential Unit Citation, or PUC, is awarded to units that display “extraordinary heroism in action against an armed enemy” and is comparable to the Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest valor award that can be awarded to an individual service member, according to an Air Force Personnel Center fact sheet.
During the operation, the combat search and rescue forces of the 66th Rescue Squadron played a key role in the effort, conducting multiple air-to-ground evacuations of personnel.
“The 66th led a dual effort during the evacuations by maintaining a flying formation for the alert mission and also voluntarily assisting with locating and processing evacuees, while also monitoring ground and tower frequencies to track numbers of American citizens, Afghan refugees, and other country nationals being evacuated aboard each C-17,” Air Force Lt. Col. Michael Dommer, commander of the 55th Rescue Squadron, said in a statement.
During the operation, Air Force Capt. Mark W. Ross, a lead HH-60G helicopter pilot with the 66th during the mission, flew through known Taliban-controlled surface-to-air weapons positions to guide an aircraft “across hundreds of miles of hostile territory through widespread thunderstorms on a zero-illumination night to an airfield in Pakistan,” according to the announcement. Ross received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions on March 2, 2023.
Airmen from the 355th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron also participated in the operation. The 355th received its own PUC award Jan. 16.
In addition to the task force, more than 500 Air Force aircrews and hundreds of support Airmen on the ground participated in Operation Allies Refuge, the final airlift evacuation out of Kabul. OAR lasted 17 days with round-the-clock operations involving some 800 military and civilian aircraft from more than 30 nations and included about half the Air Force’s C-17 Globemaster fleet. It was the largest noncombatant evacuation operation in U.S. Air Force history.
The task force remained on alert status until after the last U.S. aircraft departed Afghanistan on Aug. 30. For their “gallantry and determination under extreme hazard,” members of the task force were awarded 19 Bronze Stars, including one for Valor, and 151 Air Force Commendation Medals with Combat Devices, according to the announcement.
“Every couple of years, there’s something that happens that defines the next generation of rescue Airmen,” Air Force Col. Jose Cabrera, commander of the 355th Wing commander said. “Every generation has their time, and I think we’re seeing that today—your defining moment. This will go down in Air Force history as one of the greatest accomplishments of the Air Force rescue community.”
