Fighter Sweep
  • Home
  • Military Aviation
  • Air Force
  • Navy
  • Spec Ops
  • Expert Analysis
  • Careers
  • Photos
Home Previous Post Next Post
Follow @fightersweep

Honoring the fallen: Air Force special operators to ruck 830 miles

February 20, 2019
FighterSweep Staff No Comments Air Force, News

In a feat of extreme endurance, 20 operators from throughout the Air Force Special Operation Command (AFSOC) Special Tactics community will ruck an astounding 830 miles to honor their 20 Special Tactics brothers who have made the ultimate sacrifice since the War on Terror began in September 2001. The airmen will march from the Medina Annex, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, to Hurlburt Field, Florida.

Extreme physical toughness and stamina make up the core of all special operations forces (SOF). They provide the base upon which every other specialized capability is built.

The inspiration for the undertaking came after Staff Sergeant Dylan J. Elchin, a combat controller (CCT) assigned to the 26th Special Tactics Squadron, was killed by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan in November 2018. Alongside Sergeant Elchin, two Special Forces operators—Captain Andrew Ross and Sergeant First Class Eric Emond from the 3rd Special Forces Group—and an infantryman, Sergeant Jason McClary, were killed by the blast.

The 20 operators will be divided into 10 teams of two Special Tactics airmen. The whole team will depart from the Medina Annex in the early morning hours of February 22 and plan to arrive at Hurlburt Field on the afternoon of March 4. Consequently, they have planned for a joint-aching 75-mile pace for the duration of the 11 days. However, after the first five miles, teams will rotate, each rucking 12 miles.

Such commemorative events are becoming a tradition in the Special Tactics community. This will be the fifth march; the first Special Tactics Memorial March occurred in 2009 in memory of Staff Sergeant Timothy Davis. The men will carry a memorial baton, which will be engraved with the following names of fallen Special Tactics airmen:

  • Master Sgt. William McDaniel of Greenville, Ohio, Special Tactics Pararescueman, Feb. 22, 2002
  • Staff Sgt. Juan Ridout of Oak Harbor, Special Tactics Pararescueman, Feb. 22, 2002
  • Master Sgt. John Chapman of Windsor Locks, Connecticut, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Mar. 4, 2002
  • Senior Airman Jason Cunningham of Camarillo, California, Special Tactics Pararescueman, Mar. 4, 2002
  • Staff Sgt. Scott Sather of Clio, Michigan, Special Tactics Combat Controller, April 8, 2003
  • Derek Argel of Lompoc, California, Special Tactics Officer, May 30, 2005
  • Jeremy Fresques of Clarksdale, Arizona, Special Tactics Officer, May 30, 2005
  • Staff Sgt. Casey Crate of Spanaway, Washington, Special Tactics Combat Controller, May 30, 2005
  • Senior Airman Adam Servais of Onalaska, Wisconsin, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Aug. 19, 2006
  • Technical Sgt. Scott Duffman of Albuquerque, New Mexico, Special Tactics Pararescueman, Feb. 18, 2007
  • Technical Sgt. William Jefferson of Norfolk, Virginia, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Mar. 22, 2008
  • Staff Sgt. Timothy Davis of Aberdeen, Washington, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Feb. 20, 2009
  • Senior Airman Daniel Sanchez of El Paso, Texas, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Sep. 16, 2010
  • Senior Airman Mark Forester of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Sep. 29, 2010
  • Technical Sgt. John Brown of Tallahassee, Special Tactics Pararescueman, Aug. 6, 2011
  • Technical Sgt. Daniel Zerbe of York, Pennsylvania, Special Tactics Pararescueman, Aug. 6, 2011
  • Staff Sgt. Andrew Harvell of Long Beach, California, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Aug. 6, 2011
  • Matthew Roland of Lexington, Kentucky, Special Tactics Officer, Aug. 26, 2015
  • Staff Sgt. Forrest Sibley of Pensacola, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Aug. 26, 2015
  • Staff Sgt. Dylan Elchin of Hookstown, Pennsylvania, Special Tactics Combat Controller, Nov. 27, 2018

AFSOC is comprised of pararescuemen, combat controllers, tactical air control party airmen, and special operations weather technicians, though the lattermost military occupational specialty (MOS) is soon to be replaced by the new special reconnaissance MOS.

 

This article was written by Stavros Atlamazoglou

U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Faith Brodkorb

Related Posts

  • The Air Force Combat Controller: Leading the Way for Others to FollowThe Air Force Combat Controller: Leading the Way for Others to Follow
  • This new technology may be the future of close air supportThis new technology may be the future of close air support
  • 24th Special Tactics Airmen Wrap Up Haiti Relief24th Special Tactics Airmen Wrap Up Haiti Relief
  • Watch: See what it’s like to be on the receiving end of an A-10 Warthog strafing runWatch: See what it’s like to be on the receiving end of an A-10 Warthog strafing run
  • New Black Hawk Down war movie offers a fresh perspective on the battleNew Black Hawk Down war movie offers a fresh perspective on the battle

Find Us on Facebook

FighterSweep.com

Sign Up
for the Newsletter

What’s Hot

  • blue-angels-reporter-blacks-out-passes-out
    December 5, 2017

    Watch: News Reporter Blacks Out on Ride with US Navy Blue Angels

  • Whistling Death: How The Corsair Got Its Nickname
    August 30, 2019

    Whistling Death: How the Corsair got its nickname

  • March 23, 2019

    Rest Easy: Ranger assigned to secretive reconnaissance unit dies in free-fall accident

Follow Us

Facebook Twitter Twitter

Recent Comments

  • pak152 " the team came up with what the Brits dubbed as Mustang, powered by a [...]
  • P K Polish AF never has and never will operate Su-27, An-26 aircraft has been out [...]
  • bnarfhyde The best book is also great. have a [...]
  • TerrorTrike ive never survived this long with such a clumsy FL- cG.866B.CO/NC6155hc
  • D4rksupeme yessss truck kunnnnnnnn i needddd you m.866E.CO/vC6155H

© Copyright 2023 SOFREP Media Group. All Rights Reserved.

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Advertisers