1 - The Black Vault

PRAETORIAN STARSHIP
squadron flew two MC-130Es in support of JCS
Exercise Ocean Venture 81. One Combat Talon onloaded
a CRRC and a US Navy SEAL team at
Norfolk, Virginia, and a second aircraft did the
same at Pope AFB, North Carolina. After the two
aircraft completed their IFRs en route to the exercise
area in the Caribbean, they successfully
air-dropped their loads near Vieques Island on
Salinas water DZ. The two aircraft then airlanded
additional personnel and equipment at
Roosevelt Roads AB, Puerto Rico. The successful
SEAL-infiltration mission was flown during
the night of 6 August and turned out to be the
only Combat Talon mission of the exercise. The
remainder of Ocean Venture was canceled due
to an approaching hurricane. 30
Since the fall of 1980, joint requirements for
the 1st SOW and for Combat Talon had continued
to grow. A large-scale special operations exercise,
named Marvel Exodus, was planned from 13 to 26
September 1981, with aircraft and personnel deployed
to Fort Lewis, Washington, for the initial
phase of the exercise. The 1st SOW deployed
three MC-130Es, two AC-130Hs, six HH-53Hs,
and 271 aircrew and support personnel. The advanced
party of the 1st SOW, with 1st SOW/DOS
personnel forming its nucleus, arrived at Fort
Lewis on 9 September and spent the next four
days preparing for the arrival of the main body.
The three Combat Talons arrived on schedule on
13 September, and the crews began their missionplanning
process. From 14 to 17 September, 1st
SOW assets participated in Phase I training
events, with one MC-130E scheduled to air-drop
fuel blivets and heavy equipment, while the other
two aircraft practiced airfield seizure events with
US Army ranger personnel. The blivet and heavy
equipment drops had to be canceled on the 14th
because of a lack of rigging material, but the
drops were rescheduled and successfully accomplished
on the 16th. The airfield seizure training
events went according to plan. Also scheduled
during Phase I were IFR operations between a
KC-135 tanker and the Combat Talons, HALO
airdrops, static-line personnel airdrops, and NVG
airland operations. On the 17th of September,
scheduled forward area refueling point (FARP)
operations between an MC-130E and the HH-
53Hs were canceled due to bad weather in the
Fort Lewis area. The following day 1st SOW assets
moved from Fort Lewis to Fairchild AFB,
Washington, and planning was begun for Phase
II. The FARP training that was canceled on the
17th was completed at Fairchild AFB without incident.
The next major event of Marvel Exodus was a
full-scale airfield seizure operation at Indian
Springs, Nevada. Along with Hurlburt Field
forces, additional aircraft and personnel deployed
to Fairchild AFB from across the United States,
including forces from Fort Bragg and Pope AFB,
North Carolina; Dyess AFB, Texas; Charleston
AFB, South Carolina; Grissom AFB, Indiana;
Plattsburg AFB, New York; McClellan AFB, California;
and Eglin AFB, Florida. Phase II had two
major airfield seizure events, with the first scheduled
for 20 September and the second for the
24th. The MC-130E Combat Talons and MAC
SOLL C-130s were to airland at Indian Springs
in a complex scenario that included HH-53H
FARP operations with the Combat Talons and
transload of personnel to a C-141 for rapid exfiltration
from the exercise area. The Combat Talons
and the MAC SOLL C-130s carried mixed
loads, with the Combat Talons carrying both an
airfield assault package and FARP equipment.
Just as he had done at Desert One, Brenci flew
the lead Combat Talon into Indian Springs, followed
by the other two Combat Talons and three
SOLL C-130s. Thigpen commanded one of the
other two Talons, which was configured with Benson
tanks and FARP personnel. Brenci landed
first as planned, but the number two SOLL C-130
went around. The number three SOLL C-130
landed as planned, followed by the number four
Combat Talon commanded by Thigpen. The
number five aircraft, a SOLL C-130 aircraft from
Dyess AFB, scheduled to land after Thigpen,
had taxied off the runway en route to his FARP
location. During the approach the SOLL aircraft
entered a high sink rate on short final, which resulted
in the aircraft impacting the ground short
of the runway. The impact severely damaged the
aircraft, and a fire broke out as it came to a stop
in the airfield overrun. It was almost midnight at
Indian Springs when the accident occurred. The
aircrew managed to escape the burning wreckage,
but seven personnel in the cargo compartment
were killed. The exercise was immediately
stopped, and forces already on the ground were
redirected to respond to the accident. Medical personnel
aboard Thigpen’s Combat Talon deplaned
and assisted the base crash response team in
tending to the survivors. Brenci moved to Thigpen’s
Talon and coordinated exercise aircraft
movements along with the Indian Springs tower.
Once initial crash response actions were com pleted,
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