During the Bagram Attack

A report from Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, recounts action during the Taliban attack last week. The early morning attack started with rocket propelled grenades, that Lt. Col. James Lowe, commander of the 455th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron, said caused no significant damage. That was quickly followed by small arms fire and more grenades, some hand-thrown, as Taliban fighters attacked along the perimeter at several points. US airmen, soldiers, and marines and coalition forces engaged the enemy at various points. Joint terminal attack controllers called in Army attack helicopters. US forces had had no time to call for additional support, but about 90 off-duty 455th ESFS airmen showed up ready to join the fight. Lowe called the performance of all his airmen “exceptional,” adding, “They leapt into the fray and fought with vigor and courage.” A few days later, US forces repelled a Taliban attack at Kandahar Airfield. (Bagram report by SSgt. Richard Williams)