58 OSS pilot receives Silver Star

  • Published
  • By Stefan Bocchino
  • 377th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
Kirtland Air Force Base --  Gen. Edward Rice Jr., commander of Air Education and Training Command, presented Maj. Philip Bryant, 58th Operations Support Squadron assistant director of operations, with a Silver Star immediately after the 19th Air Force inactivation ceremony July 12 at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.

The Silver Star is awarded by all branches of the armed forces to any person who, while serving in any capacity, is cited for gallantry in action against an enemy of the United States while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force, or while serving with friendly forces against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.

Bryant received the Silver Star for actions during a military operation against an opposing armed force near Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, on April 23, 2011, while attached to the 83rd Expeditionary Rescue Squadron. He was the aircraft commander of one of two HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters sent to extract two Army pilots downed in the Allasay Valley, an enemy-controlled area east of Bagram.

"We knew we had to go fast," said Bryant. "The unit that lost the aircraft was right next to us. While our flight lead went to gather data at the Tactical Operations Center, I went over to the unit to get information on their radio frequencies. When I got back, everybody was getting on board the aircraft. The priority was getting off the ground fast, because the sun would be up shortly. With night-vision goggles and infrared, we can see so much better than the enemy."

Bryant's aircraft call sign was "Pedro 84" and the other aircraft was "Pedro 83." He said they quickly found the crash site and determined that the pilots had split up. Pedro 83 inserted three pararescuemen with the pilot who had made his way up the mountain. Pedro 84 went to the crash site, where the second pilot was.

"They told us that the second pilot was still in the wreckage," said Bryant. "My thought was to just get our guys in there quick. When our PJs got down, they found out that the pilot was dead. I did not know it until the very end of the day."

Bryant said that his formation took enemy fire during the operation. Tech. Sgt. James Davis, the flight engineer on Pedro 84, was hit. Capt. Louis Nolting, the co-pilot, flew the aircraft while he tried to get more information.

"We had to determine how badly Sergeant Davis was hit," said Bryant. "Our gunner, Staff Sgt. William Gonzalez, got over to him and started passing data to us. We quickly realized we were ineffective. The gunner had to work on the flight engineer. We had no one to run the hoist or the guns. Sergeant Davis was hit pretty badly. If Sergeant Gonzalez had not gotten a tourniquet on him, he might have died. Then we headed back to base."

Bryant said the gunner kept Davis from passing out during the 10-minute flight. After getting Davis medical help, Bryant said they got a new flight engineer, Tech. Sgt. Heath Culbertson, and took off again.

"Leaving the PJs on the ground was not a good feeling, but I knew Pedro 83 was still there to cover them, and there were a couple of Apaches and a Kiowa Warrior in the area, also," said Bryant. "I was impressed with the PJs performance all day long. They were calm, even though they were under fire for about five hours. The helicopter nearby was burning. They still managed to recover the pilot and bring him home."

Bryant said that when they got back to the crash site, their hoist broke. Culbertson then had to use the hoist in back-up mode to recover the PJs and the body, making the rescue slower than normal. After recovering the PJs and the body, the aircraft returned to base. In all, they flew six approaches under fire during their rescue attempts. The formation also saved the surviving pilot and a wounded Soldier.

"Receiving the Silver Star is a tremendous honor," said Bryant. "I can't say enough about my crew, the crew of Pedro 83, and everybody else involved. It's a tribute to the rescue community as a whole and to the training that goes on here at Kirtland AFB. It prepares us to go accomplish the mission. This is a wonderful mission to be able to do."