Way of the warrior: air commandos embody a living combat heritage

Airman, Summer, 2007 by Matthew Rosine

To the enemy, air commandos are faceless demons who gaze through mountains and hear whispers miles away on the darkest night. They can halt the wind. rain and lightning. In the breach of the storm, their voices roar across the sky, shaking the Earth--a call that summons hellfire from the heavens to incinerate their foes.

Smoldering, scorched craters are the only footprints they leave as they fade into nothingness.

To their allies, these special operations forces are enigmatic friends. That's how an Uzbek Airman described the American Airmen operating from a base in his country a few years ago.

"They're the boogeyman," the Uzbek sergeant said. "Of all the American fighting forces, the bad guys are afraid of these Airmen the most."

These special operators wield awesome power in battle, but seek no glory. Highly skilled professionals, their hands can crush and kill, but those same hands also heal, save and nurture.

These Airmen, forged in the furnace of battle, tempered by the sweat of perseverance and polished by precision training, are some of the nation's most elite warriors. They'll stand alone against overwhelming odds. And those who seek their help know they'll fight with every ounce of their will, even die, so others may live.

Today, these Airmen are bringing fear to the enemy in every skirmish of the war on terrorism. That's nothing new. It's something they've been doing well for more than 60 years.

"Their heritage continues. It hasn't ended," retired air commando Col. Jim Connors said. "These guys are writing history every day."

The colonel once commanded the 16th Operations Group at Hurlburt Field, Fla., home of the 1st Special Operations Wing air commandos. The base on the Florida Gulf Coast is part of that living heritage. Streets bear the names of fallen commandos. And the tales of their deeds are part of local lore.

Born in battle

Like all great stories passed from one generation to another, the air commandos' tale--heritage--began six decades ago. Shrouded by the mist of time and covered in the veil of legend, it's a tale full of heroic people and memorable events.

The legacy began in the jungles of Japanese-occupied Burma during World War II. The British waged an "unconventional hit-and-run war" there. Their guerilla tactics were to assault communication and resupply lines. But its many missions stretched the British forces thin. So they turned to their American ally for the air support critical to their mission success.

Gen. Henry "Hap" Arnold called for an all-volunteer corps of what he coined American "air commandos" to meet the unique challenge. The Airmen were a self-contained force operating fighter and airlift aircraft. It provided all its own maintenance and support.

On March 5, 1944, Operation Thursday launched successfully and the commandos attacked enemy forces from the air, resupplied British commandos on the ground and airlifted the wounded out of the battle. Twenty-four days later the Airmen were officially renamed the 1st Air Commando Group. This was the foundation of the air commando heritage.

"The importance of the air commando heritage is what we pass on to the next generation," said Colonel Connors, from New York, who flew AC-130 gunships. "We have been all over the world. We have stories about what we finished and did on past missions. We need to tell those stories to the people who are doing that mission today."

Colonel Connors served in Somalia. He said what special operators are doing today is even more important than what they did in the past. Learning about the past, he said, "the way we did things, the mistakes we made, the good things we did, will help them (today's air commandos) have the spirit, fire and drive to do what they need to do for the country today and in the future."

Yesterday's commandos are preserving their heritage--and its many stories--at the Air Commandos Association headquarters in Mary Esther, a few minutes drive from Hurlburt.

"Our (association's) purpose, and this was established by (Brig. Gen. Harry Aderholt) in 1967, is to promote special ops. We honor special people," said retired Lt. Col. Sam Sambogna, the association's president, who served in Vietnam. "We have a hall of fame of people who are retired, or on active duty who have done significant things."

Airmen who visit the hall of heritage will be welcomed with more than bright smiles and firm handshakes from weathered hands. The library shelves are full of books with tales of valor and courage; tales of the secret wars and the Airmen who made them successful.

In the association's hall of heroes, the faint scents of freshly cleaned glass, old metal and older newspapers fill the air. The walls are a collage of color and black-and-white photos, drawings and memorabilia. The "forcibly taken" sword of a Japanese officer lies partially unwrapped from its brown paper bed on the far side of the room. It sits on top of a glass display case as it waits to find a home in one of the many other cases in the room. And on the short front wall--centered in its rightful place of prominence--is the large wooden plaque whose small golden name plates shine with the engraved names of heroes.