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Zoomie Receives Distinguished Flying Cross
By John
Kinda reads like an action novel:
An F-16 Fighting Falcon pilot assigned to the 35th Fighter Squadron here was recently awarded the Distinguish Flying Cross for his extraordinary achievement while flying in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Capt. David Anderson, a 35th FS flight commander, received the medal from Col. C.Q. Brown, the 8th Fighter Wing commander......
As the enemy fire intensified, the JTAC ordered a strafe pass with the F-16's 20mm cannon. Anderson said his 500-pound bombs were too dangerous to employ due to the enemy's close proximity to the friendly forces.
"I understood the urgency of the request, but was still uncertain of the friendly and enemy positions," he said. "We are trained to be extremely careful when employing any kind of weapon close to friendly forces or civilians due to the risk of fratricide."
Anderson executed a fourth low, fast pass of the target area in an attempt to gain sight of the enemy. Flying over the target area at 300 feet and 500 knots, he was able to catch sight of both the U.S. troops and insurgents just meters apart.
"I received special clearance and I rolled in from the north, identified my target and opened fire with my 20mm cannon," he said. "In three successive strafe passes, I fired all 510 rounds in my gun, silencing the enemy position. Brewmaster 46 said in later conversations that he was so close to the enemy that as my high explosive 20mm rounds impacted, he was showered by dirt and debris."
Anderson said at this point he was low on fuel and needed to be able to get to a tanker to receive fuel or return to base and land.
Following Anderson's last strafe pass Hound 71 came back to the scene and took control of the target area allowing Anderson to depart to the tanker.
At the end of the fight, Anderson said there were six reported enemy fighters killed by 20mm rounds. One of those insurgents was killed in the act of setting up a 60 mm mortar with eight rounds ready to fire.
Fine flyin', boy-o.
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Comments
Long ago there was a time when such exploits were front page material.
That does not of course detract from the actions of this soldier or any other.
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nice to see the lads getting recognition for the skills that they work so hard to perfect.
C