Operation Crescent Wind was the codename for the American and British air campaign over Afghanistan in October and November 2001. The bombing campaign was aided by British special forces troops on the ground to provide targeting information for airstrikes. The campaign significantly weakened the
Taliban
The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...
, paving the way for offensives by the
Northern Alliance
The Northern Alliance, officially known as the United Islamic National Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan ( prs, جبهه متحد اسلامی ملی برای نجات افغانستان ''Jabha-yi Muttahid-i Islāmi-yi Millī barāyi Nijāt ...
to take place in November which quickly overran Taliban-controlled regions of Afghanistan.
Opening strikes
The initial strikes were launched from
Whiteman Air Force Base
Whiteman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located just south of Knob Noster, Missouri, United States. The base is the current home of the B-2 Spirit bomber. It is named for 2nd Lt George Whiteman, who was killed during the attack ...
,
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
509th Bomb Wing
The 509th Bomb Wing (509 BW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command, Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri.
The 509 BW is the host unit at Whiteman, and operates ...
taking off on the night of 7 October, followed by two on the nights of 8 October and 9 October as well. These bombers refueled with the help of KC-10 and KC-135 tankers of the 60th and 349th Mobility Wings along with the 319th Reconnaissance Wing with coordination by the
Eighteenth Air Force
Eighteenth Air Force (Air Forces Transportation) (18 AF) is the only Numbered Air Force (NAF) in Air Mobility Command (AMC) and one of the largest NAFs in the United States Air Force. 18 AF was activated on 28 March 1951, inactivated on 1 Janu ...
, first doing so off the coast of
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, followed
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
,
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
, and the
Strait of Malacca
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, 500 mi (800 km) long and from 40 to 155 mi (65–250 km) wide, between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connec ...
, then a fifth refueling near
Diego Garcia
Diego Garcia is an island of the British Indian Ocean Territory, a disputed overseas territory of the United Kingdom. It is a militarised atoll just south of the equator in the central Indian Ocean, and the largest of the 60 small islands o ...
before striking their targets in Afghanistan with GBU-31 JDAMs. After delivering their ordnance, the B-2s turned back to receive a final refueling over the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
before landing at
Andersen Air Force Base
Andersen Air Force Base (Andersen AFB, AAFB) is a United States Air Force base located primarily within the village of Yigo in the United States territory of Guam. The host unit at Andersen AFB is the 36th Wing (36 WG), assigned to the Pacific ...
. At this point the crews were swapped with the replacement crews who flew the B-2s back to Whiteman in Missouri. It took 30 hours of flying just to reach targets in Afghanistan, with the original crews flying 44 hours and 20 minutes total at the longest, and the aircraft operating for 70 hours in total. The operation remains the longest combat bombing sortie in history.
Initial targets included command and control nodes, Taliban Air Defenses, as well as the modest Taliban Air Force, with the airports of
Kabul
Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
,
Herat
Herāt (; Persian: ) is an oasis city and the third-largest city of Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Selseleh-ye Safēd ...
,
Kandahar
Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a List of cities in Afghanistan, city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population ...
,
Zaranj
Zaranj or Zarang (Persian/Pashto/ bal, زرنج) is a city in southwestern Afghanistan, near the border with Iran, which has a population of 160,902 people as of 2015. It is the capital of Nimruz Province and is linked by highways with Lashkargah ...
being targeted. The Taliban were believed to have had 40 pilots capable of getting some 50 MiG-21s and Su-22s airborne, though there was less concern about these as traditional interceptors as there was about them eventually being loaded with explosives and used to suicide bomb American encampments.
The opening night's B-2 strike was followed by ten
B-52s
B5, B05, B-5 may refer to:
Biology
* ATC code B05 (''Blood substitutes and perfusion solutions''), a therapeutic subgroup of the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical Classification System
* Cytochrome ''b''5, ubiquitous electron transport hemoprotein ...
28th Bomb Wing
The 28th Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Eighth Air Force (8 AF) of the Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) and is stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota. The wing is also the "host unit" at Ellsworth ...
VF-213
Strike Fighter Squadron 213 (VFA-213) ''Blacklions'' is an aviation unit of the United States Navy based at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia. It was established in 1955 and is currently equipped with the F/A-18F Super Hornet. The squadron is ass ...
from
CVW-11
Carrier Air Wing Eleven (CVW-11) is a United States Navy aircraft carrier air wing based at Naval Air Station Lemoore, California. The air wing is attached to the aircraft carrier .USS ''Carl Vinson'' participating in the strikes with GBU-16s and 12s, while also armed with AIM-54Cs, AIM-7Ms and AIM-9Ls to provide top cover in the low chance of Taliban interceptors. Assistance was also provided by E2Cs from
VAW-117
Airborne Command & Control Squadron 117 (VAW-117) is an airborne early warning (AEW) squadron. Nicknamed "The Wallbangers" (formerly "The Nighthawks"), it flies the E-2D Hawkeye, the USN's only carrier-based command and control platform. The squad ...
. While some of the aircrews on the first night reported encountering AAA and
MANPAD
Man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS or MPADS) are portable surface-to-air missiles. They are guided weapons and are a threat to low-flying aircraft, especially helicopters.
Overview
MANPADS were developed in the 1950s to provide military ...
SAM fire, Taliban aircraft never left the ground, and virtually the entirety of their air force was destroyed in the first night.Lambeth, p.84
A few hours after the initial strikes, the USS ''Carl Vinson'' was joined by the USS ''Enterprise'' with more F-14As of
VF-41
Fighter Squadron 41 or VF-41 was an aviation unit of the United States Navy. Originally established as VF-75A on 1 June 1945, redesignated as VF-75 on 1 August 1945, redesignated as VF-3B on 15 November 1946, redesignated as VF-41 on 1 September 19 ...
VAQ-141
Electronic Attack Squadron 141 (VAQ-141), also known as the "Shadowhawks", is an EA-18G Growler squadron of the United States Navy that is based at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, located in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi, Japan. VAQ-141 falls under the c ...
from
CVW-8
Carrier Air Wing Eight (CVW-8), is a United States Navy aircraft carrier air wing based at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia. The air wing is attached to the aircraft carrier
Mission
To conduct carrier air warfare operations and assist in the ...
cruise missile
A cruise missile is a guided missile used against terrestrial or naval targets that remains in the atmosphere and flies the major portion of its flight path at approximately constant speed. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhe ...
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