Diplomacy, while the preferable option, doesn’t always work to get Americans home.
And with so many Americans overseas, it’s important to have a backup plan.
Five airmen from Kirtland Air Force Base were awarded medals last week for their roles in a daring predawn rescue mission in West Africa in October 2020 that brought home American Philip Walton, who was being held for ransom in Nigeria after being kidnapped from his home in Niger.
Then-Capt. Kyle Konkolics, who was piloting a tiltrotor aircraft, said things started going wrong right from the start as his unpressurized CV-22 had to fly at high altitude, causing hypoxia among the crew, who had to share oxygen masks.
Airmen and Navy commandos in eight aircraft also had their instruments stop working, battled weather, dodged obstacles and were required to refuel mid-flight multiple times.
The quickly organized, 11-hour rescue effort became the most long-distance rescue in a single night in U.S. Department of Defense history. And no U.S. military personnel were injured, including the Navy commandos who parachuted to the ground and killed about a half-dozen of Walton’s kidnappers.
Konkolics, now a major, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Senior Master Sgt. Christopher Reedy received the Distinguished Flying Cross (First Oak Leaf Cluster). Tech. Sgt. Robert Duck received the Air Medal (Second Oak Leaf Cluster). Tech. Sgt. Thomas Morgan received the Air Medal (Second Oak Leaf Cluster). Staff Sgt. Christin Springs received the Air Medal (First Oak Leaf Cluster).
All five airmen are currently working as instructors at Kirtland’s 58th Special Operations Wing, which prepares airmen for special operations and combat search-and-rescue missions.
“Finding your courage is probably the hardest part, and every airman on that flight had to find their courage,” Maj. Gen. Phillip Stewart, the commander of the 19th Air Force, said during Wednesday’s medal ceremony.
New Mexicans can be proud to have such a rescue team right here in Albuquerque, although diplomacy should remain the first option when it comes to rescuing Americans.
It may have taken 10 months, but it was a prisoner swap that brought home Women’s National Basketball Association star Brittney Griner in December.
Former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who was involved in back-channel negotiations for Griner’s release, and the Richardson Center announced Thursday that Navy veteran Taylor Dudley was released from Russia, where he had been held since April 2022. Dudley, a Michigan native, was in Poland to attend a music festival and was detained when he crossed into Kaliningrad.
There are numerous other examples of Americans overseas being rescued through diplomatic efforts, which sometimes can take years. But it’s reassuring knowing when diplomacy doesn’t work, there’s a search-and-rescue training program right here in New Mexico, and men and women willing to risk their lives to save Americans.
It’s just another example of how important New Mexico’s three military bases are to the nation and its defense.
This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.
