1 - The Black Vault

OPERATION ASSURED RESPONSE TO THE NEW MILLENNIUM
the –425 u pgrade to the AN/APQ-170(V)1 radar,
including required spares, (2) completion of the
radome anti-icing upgrade, and (3) sufficient
numbers of operationally suitable radomes to support
contingency and peacetime training requirements.
AFSOC estimated that all requirements
for FOC would not be met until October 2000, at
which time FOC would be declared. 142
The 711th SOS Deploys to Brindisi
On 7 February 1998, Colonel Wilson replaced
Colonel Hanson as the commander of the 711th
SOS. Hanson became the 919th SOW vice commander
on 4 April when the incumbent moved to
another position outside the wing. Later in the
spring Headquarters AFSOC and Headquarters
AFRC announced plans for a new Reverse Associ -
ate Program Concept that the Air Force projected
for the 919th SOW. Under the concept all 14
Combat Talon I aircraft would be transferred to
the AFRC under the 919th SOW at Duke Field.
The 8th SOS, which was the only remaining active
duty Combat Talon I squadron, would relocate
to Duke Field and continue to fly the reserveassigned
Talon Is. The concept was unique
because, for the first time, an active duty flying
unit would be associated with a Reserve unit and
would fly reserve-assigned aircraft, instead of the
traditional active duty-assigned aircraft being
flown by Reserve crews. A site survey was conducted
at Duke Field from 3 to 5 August to lay
the foundation for actions required to make the
Reverse Associate Program Concept a reality.
The projected implementation date was established
as 1 January 2000. 143
Members of the 919th SOW began deploying to
Brindisi, Italy, in support of the ongoing Balkan
operation in mid-August 1998. From August to
mid-October, more than 150 personnel deployed
to Italy in five different rotations, with 711th
SOS’s CT Is covering the first four and the 5th
SOS picking up the last and final rotation. Squadron
crews flew missions into Sarajevo and Tuzla
in the Republic of Bosnia and refueled special operations
helicopters committed to the operation.
Deployed maintenance personnel spent long days
and many additional hours keeping the aging
Combat Talons mission ready. When unit personnel
returned to Duke Field in the fall, they had
made a significant contribution to the allied effort
in the Balkan region. 144 As 1998 came to an end,
the New Year promised to see the Reverse Associate
Program Concept become a reality.
1999: Operation Allied Force
Brings Peace to the Balkans
The last year of the decade saw the Combat
Talon force deployed around the globe. In the Balkans
the 7th SOS went to war as part of the largest
air campaign since World War II. Preparations
were finalized to transfer 14 CT Is to
USAFRC, and the 8th SOS prepared to move to
Duke Field. By year’s end the Combat Talon
would have written another colorful chapter in its
long and distinguished history.
The 1st SOS Returns to Mongolia
The 1st SOS began the New Year by deploying
two MC-130H Combat Talons to Nellis AFB for
Red Flag 99-2 (RF 99-2), Period 1. Forty-nine personnel
from the 1st SOS and 353d Maintenance
Squadron deployed on 6 January 1999 to participate
in the intensive exercise from 10 to 22 January.
This was the second consecutive participation
in the RF series by the 1st SOS.
On 17 January the 17th SOS deployed one MC-
130P for the second period of the exercise. Both
squadrons used NVG/terrain-following systems,
air-drop/airland resupply procedures, and lowlevel
profiles to support Blue forces participating
in the exercise. As the scenario progressed to a
high-threat environment, the two special operations
squadrons transitioned to CSAR support. 145
Red Flag 99-2 provided an excellent training
environment for the MC-130H aircrews. The mis -
sion commander, Colonel Buterbaugh, characterized
the exercise as “the most intensive tactical
combat training the squadron received” to date. It
gave the 1st SOS an opportunity to use special
tactics while integrating into diverse mission
packages and operating in a medium-to-high
threat environment. Few training exercises offered
profiles with such extensive ECMs as those
encountered on the Nellis range. While participating
in RF 99-2, the two squadrons flew 38 sorties
and 125.1 flying hours. 146
The following month the squadron participated
in JCET BM 99-1 and for the second time deployed
a Combat Talon to Mongolia in support of
host-nation and US Army Special Forces personnel.
The initial planning conference for BM 99-1
had been conducted the previous November in
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, after completion of the
initial JCET to that country. During the conference
the US ambassador to Mongolia, the Hon.
Alphonse F. La Porta, expressed his support for
training between US SOF and Mongolian defense
449