LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va.
Air Combat Command released an accident investigation board report today regarding the E-11A crash that occurred January 27, 2020, during which two pilots were fatally injured. The E-11A crashed in Ghazni Province, Afghanistan, following a catastrophic engine failure.
Both pilots, Lt. Col. Paul K. Voss, 46, and Capt. Ryan S. Phaneuf, 30, were assigned to the 430th Expeditionary Electronic Combat Squadron, Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, and were conducting a combat sortie in support of Operation FREEDOM’S SENTINEL.
Their mission, and the mission of the E-11A, was to serve as a Battlefield Airborne Communications Node, which allows different communication systems to share and relay voice, video, imagery and data between warfighters in the air and on the ground. BACN is often referred to as “Wi-Fi in the sky” and enables connectivity across multiple battlespace communication platforms.
Why Military Christmas Care Packages End Up in Burn Pits
A Russian made Mil Mi-8 helicopter lands at Forward Operating Base Airborne, Afghanistan, after a two-day snow storm, Nov. 25, 2009. (Teddy Wade/U.S. Army)
16 Dec 2020 The War Horse | By Andrew James McCormick
For the holiday season of 2013, Forward Operating Base Shank was home. The base was situated in Afghanistan’s Logar Province, at the base of a wide topographical bowl with mountains visible in all directions terrain that made the base a perfect target for mortar attacks. In the warmer months, attacks were constant, earning Shank the nickname “Rocket City.” In the winter, things were quieter. The Taliban, like everyone else, stayed inside to avoid the cold.