1 - The Black Vault

DESERT SHIELD/DESERT STORM
Three Combat Talons flew night low-level, NVG
landings, IFR, and rapid exfiltration of exercise
forces. All AFSOCCENT aircrews, inclu ding those of
the MC-130E, MH-53H, MH-60G, HC-130P/N , and
AC-130H, performed in an exemplary manner. 33 The
week of 9–12 January 1991 was the last week of
training before the beginning of the air war over Iraq.
Combat Talons flew training sorties every night during
that final week. In total Combat Talon aircraft flew 49
training sorties during Desert Shield. When Desert
Storm began on 16 January 1991, the squadron was
ready.
From the initial buildup in August, and continuing
on well past the end of the ground war in
February, the 8th SOS deployed 13 crews. Some
personnel moved from one crew to another and remain
ed in Saudi Arabia when the November rota -
tion was completed. The 13 crews from the 8th SOS
that supported Operation Desert Shield/Desert
Storm are listed below:*
Crew 1 Crew 2 Crew 3 Crew 4 Crew 5 Crew 6 Crew 7 Crew 8
Phillips Davenport Henry Collins O’Reilly Barragy Abbott Black
Close Cochran Close Zack Hinck Linder McCoy Barragy
Stone Palmer English Meller Harstad Boitano Batts Gabreski
Reynolds Beres Bell Pulmano Crisafi Tagert Inkel Booz
Chapman Saier Thomas Kersh Franco Weiler Clites Traudt
Anderson Smith Filer Pearson Bonn Shin Henderson Clayton
Pies Gorczynski Tremblay Fleming Dunn Rother Fabbro Singletary
Burton Bonck Ballerstadt Dent Boulware Westby Westby Harris
Mulcahy Crayne Corlew Gobbi Kelly Kelly Scott Hartke
Baker Lutman Pearson Roberson Tavarez Carroll Martin Klink
Manley Martin Restifo Prior Carroll Fleming Lutman Scott
Bohannon Santiago Lorenz Clark Kersh Clites
Calvert Biermacher Linder Burnett Packard
Packard Chapman Boitano Vonsik Klink
Boulware Lawler Mitchell Foster
Ballerstadt Garvey Cox
Long Minton
Crew 9 Crew 10 Crew 11 Crew 12 Crew 14
Murdock Cox Michenfelder Gabreski Cochran
English Boitano Rowe Larson Settergren
Weiler Cody Reynolds Howell Reynolds
Gantert Franco Lindhorst Acosta Hilliard
Alaniz Bonn Messer Knight Vanderley
Long Ferguson Sager Packard Lowery
Sanders Kyle Everett Boulware Keelan
Rodriguez Livingston Durbin Rodriguez Burton
Mitchell Pickering Rodriguez Tavarez Grover
Santiago Kenney Fillen Ward
Makela Harris Shin
Massey
Hinck
Turner
Beres
__________
*Crews 1, 4, and 5 returned to Hurlburt Field during the November 1990 swap out. Some crew members from these three crews augmented the
six formed crews remaining at KFIA and awaiting the start of the war. Crews 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, and 9 flew leaflet and BLU-82B missions during the
January/February Desert Storm period. Crews 10, 11, 12, and 14 deployed to Saudi Arabia after the termination of the ground war in late
February. Some members of the latter four crews had flown during Desert Storm and remained in place at KFIA after cessation of the ground war.
No crew photos are available for crews 11, 12, and 14, and no crew was designated Crew 13. Crew members flew on different crews during the
prolonged deployment to Southwest Asia. Not all crew members were available for each crew picture.
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