How A Dusty Strip Deep In Iran Can Be Turned Into A U.S. Special Operations Base In Hours
An ex-USAF Special Tactics Squadron member tells how the impromptu airfield in Iran would have been rapidly established and defended.
An ex-USAF Special Tactics Squadron member tells how the impromptu airfield in Iran would have been rapidly established and defended.
www.twz.com
Before the WSO was finally recovered from the mountain crevice where he was hiding, a forward arming and refueling point (FARP) deep inside enemy territory had to be rapidly set up and secured so that it could act as a staging area for the aircraft, equipment and troops taking part in the mission. This is an exact mission set U.S. special operations forces train for extensively.
Info on USAF Special Tactics Squadrons - the United States Airforce elite ground units.
www.americanspecialops.com
Special Tactics Squadron (STS) units are an elite cadre of operators who work to control aircraft in the air, including from airfields they establish deep inside contested territory, and direct airpower onto the enemy, among other duties, including rescuing personnel trapped behind enemy lines. They are often paired with special operations units, such as SEALs, Delta Force and Rangers, to bring their unique skills to their missions.
For this mission, the Special Tactics team just needed someplace to land a couple of
MC-130J Commando IIs. Those are designed to infiltrate and exfiltrate special operations troops into and out of the hinterlands, so an agricultural runway intended for crop-spraying planes would fit the bill in terms of dimensions. t can be assumed that Special Tactics units has been scoping out landing zones in that area since at least this war started, maybe far earlier.
