Osprey Guidebook

CV-22 MISSIONPersonnel Recovery MissionJune, 2010SNAPSHOTLong Range, High Speed,High Altitude, Vertical Lift ExfiltrationOn 1 June 2010 a coalition helicopter conducting a specialoperations raid was disabled on a target near Kunduz, Afghanistan.Stranded in the open, the aircrew and ground party were undersmall arms and mortar fire.Other theater aircraft made multiple rescue attempts, but nonewere successful due to rugged mountainous terrain and a severedust storm.Two 8th Special Operations Squadron CV-22 aircraft based atKandahar launched within two hours of notification and flew a directroute at 15000 feet over the Hindu Kush mountain range. Usingtheir advanced navigation and sensor suite, the flight was able tocontinue its mission through periods of very low visibility.32 U.S. personnel were recovered from the target area.The CV-22s accomplished the round trip flight from Kandahar inless than 4 hours without requiring additional fuel.“Thanks for picking us up when no one else could.”-Ground Force Commander46 CV-22 Long Range Personnel RecoveryCV-22 Long Range Personnel Recovery47