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 Chief
Master Sgt. Michael West, a Special Tactics operator with
the 720th Operations Support Squadron, utilized 58 coalition
aircraft delivering 24,000 pounds of munitions, turning the
tide of battle, and now he’s receiving the Silver Star
Medal.
During a ceremony on December 15, 2017 at
Hurlburt Field, Florida ... the commander of the Air Force
Special Operations Command, Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, presented
the nation’s third highest medal for gallantry against an
armed enemy of the U.S. in combat to West. West’s actions
occurred 11 years earlier, when he was deployed with U.S.
Army Special Forces teams in support of Operation MEDUSA.
"This ceremony is about the Air Commando culture
epitomized in Special Tactics and Special Tactics being
epitomized in that chief right there," said Webb. "It's a
culture of willingly facing seemingly insurmountable
problems; it's about courage, endurance, wisdom. It's
figuring out to solve problems and getting 'er done. It's
about finding the way."
West was originally awarded
the Bronze Star Medal for his actions in May 2007, but due
to a recent DOD-wide review, his package was resubmitted for
an upgrade.
“I am honored and humbled for the recognition, and I wish
the [Special Forces] team guys were here to share this,”
said West. “It was a great opportunity to work with a bunch
of professionals, and I know that I have friends for life.”
As a Special Tactics combat controller, West is a
part of a highly-trained special operations force who
integrates air power into the special operations’ ground
scheme of maneuver.
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December 15, 2017 - Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, commander of Air Force Special Operations
Command, presents a Silver Star Medal certificate to Chief Master
Sgt. Michael West, a Special Tactics operator with the 24th Special
Operations Wing, during his ceremony, , at Hurlburt
Field, Florida. West was awarded the SSM for a five-day battle, dubbed
Operation MEDUSA, in 2006. West utilized 58 coalition strike
aircraft to deliver 24,000 pounds of precision ordnance to eliminate
more than 500 enemy forces to secure the safety of 51 Special Forces
soldiers and 33 coalition partners. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior
Airman Ryan Conroy)
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"Special Tactics is the
connective tissue between the ground and air and you can ask
our Army and Navy counterparts who will not leave home with
Special Tactics," said Webb. "Special Tactics exemplifies
what it means in that 'find the way' Air Commando culture,
and West epitomizes Special Tactics.”
Webb said we
are living in a “Golden Age” of Special Tactics, citing the
10 Air Force Crosses and this ceremony marking the 42nd
Silver Star Medal awarded to a Special Tactics operator
since 9/11.
Operation
MEDUSA
On Sept. 5, 2006, then-Master Sgt.
West was assigned to three different Special Forces teams
alongside three platoons of Afghan National Army forces
during a deployment to Panjwai Village, Afghanistan.
Operation MEDUSA was a Canadian-led effort to clear a
village, believed to be a Taliban safe haven of 700-1000
enemy forces. A Canadian ground force would clear the
village from west to east and the Special Forces teams,
alongside West, would set up a blockade position south of
the village.
As the Canadian-led ground force began
their movement, they were met with fierce resistance,
resulting in a crippling amount of casualties that forced
them to disengage.
In an attempt to salvage the
operation, the Task Force directed the special operations
teams to seize and hold elevated terrain to observe and
attack enemy positions.
“The first day we approached
this hill, we met heavy resistance … the enemy saw us coming
from the south, and we started to get shot at from tree
lines on either side of us,” said West.
At this
time, West coordinated airpower from a B-1 Lancer bomber
aircraft to drop eight bombs on the enemy and their resupply
compound. This was the first time West would utilize
airpower to eliminate the enemy, but it would not be his
last.
The next day, the teams decided to advance up
the hill further to investigate and clear an old enemy
compound. Due to the high probability of enemy engagement,
West coordinated two A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft to watch over
them. They cleared the buildings and as they began to climb
higher, an ANA soldier stepped on an anti-personnel mine.
“We were all blown back trying to figure out what
happened and once the dust settled, we heard the screaming,”
said West. “The soldier was lying there with half of his leg
gone, and he was really banged up.”
West and his
team leader quickly assessed the man for injuries and
applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding and decided he
needed to be evacuated. As the team struggled to carry the
injured ANA solider off the hill, a vehicle in the team’s
convoy hit an improvised explosive device, which triggered a
full-on assault from enemy forces.
“As soon as the
it blew, the tree lines on either side of us fully erupted
with gunfire … like they were waiting for that IED to
explode,” said West. “We started receiving [rocket-propelled
grenade] fire and small arms fire and my team was completely
exposed.”
The joint special operations team began to
fire back, but West did what multiple Special Tactics Airmen
before and after him have done countless times, he called
for airpower.
“I immediately put those A-10s into
action and started putting them in gun runs on the tree
line,” said West. “I was so focused on ensuring the enemy
shooting at us was getting eliminated that I didn’t hear my
team leader yelling at me to duck for cover – I was
completely exposed up there.”
Multiple gun runs on
the tree line allowed for his team to move behind cover
using the convoy of vehicles. Eventually, the enemy began to
maneuver away from the relentless gun runs into an open
field. This allowed West to call in a danger-close 500-pound
air-burst bomb to eliminate the remaining enemy. That was
just the first day.
According to Webb, the Special
Forces team continuously stated, “We knew we could sleep
when Mike was working.”
Webb stated, “There is no
higher praise in special operations.”
On the final
day of the operation, the team began to clear areas around
the hill for remaining enemy forces. They were split into
three groups and once West and his team were a few
kilometers away, one of the teams was ambushed while
clearing huts used to dry grapes.
“I heard my name
over the radio and they needed my help – and they needed it
quickly,” said West.
His team drove directly at the
enemy forces firing from yet another tree line. This time,
West utilized two F-18 Hornet fighter aircraft to push the
enemy out. West used this as another opportunity to
eliminate the remaining forces with another danger-close
500-pound bomb.
“It completely eliminated the
threat,” said West. “It went from a chaotic situation,
screaming over the radio, to the enemy is now running away.”
At the end of the five-day operation, West was
credited with saving 51 American lives and 33 coalition
partners while eliminating more than 500 enemy from their
safe haven. West’s team came over following the final
engagement with the team leader shaking his hand.
“Mike will never buy a beer when he’s in front of me,” said
the team leader.
By U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Ryan Conroy
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2018
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