A Very Long-Range Hostage Rescue Mission from Niger to neighboring Nigeria conducted in the early hours of October 31, 2020

Above all else, this most recent and highly-successful very long-range hostage rescue mission was really a showcase of how the special operations community can combine to pull off what just a decade ago would not have been impossible. 

America’s Elite Flying Unit That Made The Recent Long-Range Hostage Rescue In Africa Possible

The Nigerian rescue mission shows how CV-22B Ospreys and MC-130J Commando IIs based in the UK are truly America’s “9-1-1” force.

BYJAMIE HUNTER|UPDATED NOV 27, 2020 6:02 PM EST

The 352nd SOW, with its nest in Europe’s doorstep, along with its co-located KC-135R tankers, sit ready to rapidly reach out thousands of miles to deal with rapidly evolving situations in a manner that only they can. They truly provide a 9-1-1 rescue and direct action transport force for combatant commanders that are tasked with operations in Europe and Africa. . .when that emergency phone rings, they certainly answer the call, and then some.

. . .News of Walton’s safe extraction threw the spotlight directly upon U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) as reports, including here at The War Zone, revealed the daring mission brought together a raft of air assets, including CV-22B Ospreys and MC-130J Commando IIs, as well as  KC-135R tankers to support their long-range mission.

Unconfirmed reports now indicate that the raiding party of special operators parachuted into an area near where Walton was being held, probably from the MC-130Js, with the CV-22Bs then safely recovering the assault team and the hostage.

• The special operations Ospreys and their MC-130J Commando II companion aircraft used in October’s mission came from the 352nd Special Operations Wing (SOW) and the KC-135R tankers came from the 100th Air Refueling Squadron, all of which are based at RAF Mildenhall, in the UK. 
• This unique and elite team is tailored to swiftly execute exactly this kind of high-stakes mission as America’s regional “9-1-1” emergency response force for Europe and Northern Africa.

A 352nd SOW CV-22B moves in to receive fuel from an MC-130J., Jamie Hunter

Assembling the required assets for the rescue detail saw the activation of as many as six Ospreys and no less than four MC-130Js, which dashed from their base in the United Kingdom to Naval Air Station Rota, in Spain. 

• Four of these forward-deployed Ospreys were subsequently launched for the clandestine long-range, round-trip to Nigeria, where Walton was being held. 
• Four KC-135Rs joined the assault, and these were used to refuel the MC-130Js, which in turn topped-up the fuel tanks of the Ospreys in order to facilitate such a long-range rescue, that spanned at least 1,700 miles each way. 
• The mission also included an AC-130J gunship, which was likely to have provided top cover during the actual extraction phase, along with a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon, which likely employed its sensors and communications to provide command and control and overwatch support.

This mission clearly illustrates why Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) placed so much importance on procurement of the CV-22, a requirement that largely rose out of the ashes of a failed attempt to rescue American hostages held by Iranian revolutionaries on April 24, 1980. 

• Operation Eagle Claw involved eight RH-53D Sea Stallion helicopters and six C-130s, three MC-130E Combat Talon special operations transports and three EC-130E Airborne Battlefield Command and Control Center (ABCCC) aircraft, which were used for an ambitious rescue attempt that ended in disaster when one of the RH-53s crashed into a parked EC-130E during a remote refueling operation deep in the Iranian desert, killing five 8th Special Operations Squadron Airmen and three Marines.

Speaking at a memorial ceremony in 2017, the then vice commander of AFSOC Maj Gen Mike Plehn said: “I would tell you that all of those who participated in that daring mission deserve our unwavering gratitude, for they changed the way American special operations forces are organized, trained, equipped, and conducted.” 

Lessons learned from Eagle Claw laid the foundation of future U.S. special operations forces capabilities, including the eventual introduction of the Osprey decades later.

A CV-22B Osprey flies on a low-level mission from RAF Mildenhall., Jamie Hunter

Mildenhall’s modern AFSOC team

Today, the 352nd SOW is AFSOCs emergency service for Special Operations Command Europe (SOCEUR), and Special Operations Command Africa (SOCAFRICA). It supports all manner of covert and clandestine missions and short-notice calls to action during any number of crises, as evidenced by this rescue. . .

“Pre 9-11, we were executing rapid crisis response, conducting short-duration contingency operations, and most frequently, supporting the larger joint force with specialized capabilities,” commented AFSOC commander Lieutenant General Jim Slife, adding that AFSOC post 9-11 transitioned from short-duration crisis and contingency response to sustained combat operations. “We are at another inflection point and the strategic landscape has shifted fundamentally, yet again underneath us,” Slife noted, underscoring an overall shift towards preparing for high-end, near-peer threats. 

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