By U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jimmy Norris
PAKTYA PROVINCE, Afghanistan – A shocked group of insurgents looked up from the grounds of their supposed "safe house" in Mangal Kheyl village, Zormat District in Afghanistan's Paktya province, to see a pair of twin-rotor CH-47 Chinook helicopters bearing down on them, April 22.
Working as part of the first combat air assault mission in the history of the Vermont National Guard, Soldiers from C Company, 3rd Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment, alongside their Afghan partners watched from aboard the descending helicopters as the enemy dropped their weapons and fled.
"The enemy were completely surprised by our air assault," said C Company spokesman U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Mark Fazio, from Company C, 3-172nd INF. "As the aircraft landed we could see them drop their weapons and run away as fast as they could."
The "cordon and search" mission was conducted in response to Soldiers from the 3-172nd INF and the Afghan national army collecting intelligence centering around an insurgents' safe-house and logistical staging point, Fazio said.
During the mission Soldiers captured the largest weapons cache in the district in three years, Fazio said. The company was also the first unit in the battalion to capture a foreign fighter.
"This was a great opportunity for our company to be part of history and to showcase our abilities and versatility in combat," said U.S. Army Capt. Daniel Newman, Company C commander.
Participants in the historic mission called it a success and look forward to repeating the experience.
"This was by far the most gratifying mission we have conducted with an outcome that left us wanting more," said U.S. Army Sgt. Billy Whitcher, a team leader with Company C.
Fazio said the mission sent a message to the enemies of Afghanistan.
"The success of the mission showed the value of using air assaults in this area to gain surprise and catch the enemy when they aren't expecting us to be able to reach them," Fazio said.