Two airmen received the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) medal and three others were awarded Air Medals, for actions that took place while rescuing a civilian from abductors in Nigeria in 2020.
Air and Space Forces magazine reported that the award ceremony took place Jan.11 at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico.
Maj. Kyle Konkolics and Senior Master Sgt. Christopher Reedy earned the DFCs – the service’s fourth-highest awards for heroism in combat. Staff Sgt. Christin Springs, Tech. Sgt. Thomas Morgan, and Staff Sgt. Robert Duck earned the Air Medals. All were special operators.
They are credited with helping rescue 27-year-old Philip Walton, a U.S. citizen. Records show that Air Force CV-22 Osprey and MC-130J Commando II aircraft took off from Rota, Spain, carrying a Navy SEAL team, for the 11-hour flight to the area where Walton was being held hostage.
The aircraft encountered several problems during the trip – including hypoxia among some crew members and an electrical failure on a KC-135 tanker that had refueled the other aircraft several times. Reedy’s aircraft at one point lost all critical aircraft systems.
He is credited with coordinating the plane’s safe landing with no cockpit displays, according to the magazine article. Morgan assisted in the landing as well. Duck provided oxygen masks to the crewmembers who suffered from hypoxia. Springs helped refueling operations for the MC-130J, even though communications were degraded.
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