1 - The Black Vault

ROAD TO COMBAT TALON II
After the February exercise in Guam, two 8th
SOS aircraft deployed to Hunter AAF, Georgia,
and participated in sustainment training in support
of the USA rangers stationed there. From 17
March to 4 April, one MC-130E deployed to Amman,
Jordan, for a JCS-directed exercise. During
the two-week deployment, the crew planned and
flew mission profiles designed to help the Jorda -
nian military evaluate its air defense network,
while at the same time providing hard-to-get
threat training for the Talon crew. Additional
ECM training was accomplished when airborne
intercept missions were successfully flown against
Royal Jordanian Air Force fighter aircraft. 33 From
27 July to 25 August, the squadron participated
in Bright Star 85, flying exercise missions into
Jordan, Oman, and Somalia while basing out of
Cairo West, Egypt. In September Miles took two
of his Talons to Gowen AAF, Boise, Idaho, for the
1st SOW’s ORE. The ORE, named Casino Gambit,
tasked the Talon crews to fly missions that
included night mountain terrain following, personnel
airdrop of USA Special Forces, in-flight refueling,
helicopter air refueling, and ECM training.
Casino Gambit was designed to prepare the
squadron and the wing for their upcoming ORI. 34
From 2 to 10 December the squadron deployed
to Biggs AAF, Texas, for the 1st SOW’s ORI,
which was named Purple Duck. Four MC-130Es,
six crews, and a Combat Talon planning staff participated
in the evaluation along with other wing
assets. Included in the employment phase were
HALO personnel drops of CCT and leaflet drops
supporting the psychological warfare scenario of
the exercise. 35 Throughout the evaluation disconnects
and misunderstandings occurred between
the MAC evaluators and the special operations
participants, primarily because of unclear grading
criteria. Although the Talon crews performed satisfactorily,
the ORI was halted on 10 December,
and the wing was redeployed to Hurlburt Field.
I n the coming year, much effort would be expended
to develop criteria that applied to SOF employment
so that a fair and impartial ORI could be
administered.
* * * * * *
As the three Talon squadrons struggled to satisfy
the increasing demands on their scarce resources,
terrorist acts against the United States
accelerated around the world during 1985. In April
a bomb exploded in a restaurant frequented by
American service members near Torrejon AB,
Spain. Eighteen Spaniards were killed, and 82
others were injured, including 15 Americans. In
June 1985 TWA Flight 847 was hijacked over the
Mediterranean, thus beginning a two-week hostage
drama that saw the murder of one American
as the aircraft flew to different Arab countries
around the region. Non-American hostages were
released at various times during the ordeal. The
remaining 39 mostly American passengers were
eventually released in Damascus, Syria, after being
held in Beirut, Lebanon. In El Salvador (also
in June) four US marines and two American businessmen
were killed along with 13 others during
a machine-gun attack on a street-side cafe in the
capital city of San Salvador. In August a large car
bomb exploded at Rhein Main AB, Germany, near
the 435th TAW headquarters and one block from
the 7th SOS operations building, killing two airmen
and injuring 20 others. The following day
German police found the body of a US soldier,
who was apparently murdered for his identifica -
tion (ID) card. The stolen ID had been used by the
terrorists to gain access to the air base.
In October 1985 four Palestinian terrorists hijacked
the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro along
with 400 passengers and crew off the coast of
Egypt. The terrorists killed a disabled American
tourist, 69-year-old Leon Klinghoffer, and threw
his body and his wheelchair overboard. The terrorists
demanded the release of 50 Palestinian
prisoners being held in Israeli jails. After a twoday
drama, the terrorists surrendered in exchange
for safe passage back to the Middle East.
An Egyptian airliner attempted to fly the terrorists
to freedom, but US Navy F-14 fighters intercepted
the airliner and forced it to land in Sicily.
Italian authorities took the terrorists into custody
as US Navy SEAL Team Six and US Army Delta
Force soldiers prepared to assault the Egyptian
aircraft. The following month another Egyptian
airliner was hijacked by terrorists, and one
American on board was murdered. In a scenario
similar to the TWA hijacking the previous June,
the hijackers made demands as the aircraft was
flown to airports around the Mediterranean. The
episode ended in a bloodbath with the loss of 60
lives, when Egyptian commandos stormed the aircraft
while it was on the ground in Malta. The
volatile year ended in December with Arab suicide
bombers simultaneously striking US and
Italian check-in counters at the Rome and Vienna
airports. In the two attacks, 20 people were killed,
including four terrorists who carried out the acts.
The ability of the United States to respond to
terrorist attacks had improved since 1980, but
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