F-16 Pilot’s Heroic Double Sortie Resupplies Army Rangers in Intense Afghan Battle

On a high-stakes mission close to Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, Air Force pilot Craig Andrle encountered a horrific obstacle in 2017. An ominous indicator of a desperate conflict developing just 50 miles away, the alert was sent off when an AC-130 gunship returned to base empty of ammo. In a high valley, Army Rangers faced strong opposition; Andrle's F-16 squadron was their lifeline.

Andrle started with his wingman entirely in the afterburner toward the fight. He was above the action zone in a few minutes, strafing enemy locations with his cannon and throwing every bomb from his F-16. Still, the mission did not finish there.

Andrle changed his empty jet for the fully equipped spare F-16 right back to Bagram. Reversing back to the battle, he fired a second wave of airstrikes from every weapon aboard the second aircraft. Every sortie arrived in the combat in less than ten minutes, therefore guaranteeing continuous assistance for the struggling Rangers.

The severity of the combat was highlighted by the daylight deployment of the AC-130, a rare because of its fragility. Along with his fellow airmen, Andrle's activities were crucial in keeping the ground forces under siege intact.

We simply ran out of weapons; that monster is essentially a flying, tank-killing machine. You know it's an awful day, Andrle said.

This incredible mission is still evidence of the bravery and fast thinking of American Air Force personnel.

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