May 25, 2007, no one with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit thought the training exercise they were about to begin just outside of King Faisal Air Base, Jordan, would go so horribly wrong. A misdirected MK-82 bomb dropped by a ‘Harrier’ landed near a ‘Cobra,’ injuring both pilots and igniting the ammunition aboard the demolished ‘Cobra.’
The heroism displayed that day by Capt. Lauchlin Byrd, IV, Marine Light/ Attack Helicopter Squadron 167 pilot, Master Gunnery Sgt. Gregory Staggs, Marine Medium Tiltrotor Training Squadron 204 maintenance chief, and Sgt. Billy Shue, HML/A-167 crew chief, earned them each a Navy and Marine Corps Medal and Capt. Nathan Anderson, HML/A-167 pilot, an Air Medal presented by Maj. Gen. Kenneth J. Glueck, Jr., Jan. 29 in a ceremony at the Station theater.
“We launched out just after sunset with a Uh-1N ‘Huey,’ an AH-1W ‘Super Cobra’ and four AV-8B ‘Harriers,’” said Staggs. “The mission was briefed that the skids would go in and do area briefs for the ‘Harriers’ and after the range sweep would land approximately two miles away to conserve fuel while the ‘Harriers’ did their bomb runs. The ‘Harriers’ would then cue the skids to go in and do their gun and rocket runs.”
“After we landed we watched the first two runs with direct hits, but on the third run we heard the ‘Harriers’ calling inbound over the radio,” he said. “We heard the beep of the bomb release over the radio and then five seconds later the bomb hit the ‘Cobra.’ Once the bomb hit, the percussion from the blast lifted the ‘Huey’ onto its left skid and threw everyone forward onto the deck.”
“As I got off the deck, I could see the ‘Cobra’ in flames and on its side,” he said. “I notified the pilot, who called a cease fire, and I started running to the aircraft. As I ran forward I saw one of the pilots staggering toward the rear of the ‘Huey,’ which was still running. I helped to intercept him, checked his injuries and found that he had some severe burns.”
Anderson meanwhile was working on shutting the ‘Huey’ off because it was badly damaged from the explosion and falling debris.
After Staggs and Shue, who helped Staggs intercept the staggering pilot, had checked the pilot’s injuries, the pilot started to come to his senses and tried to go back to his ‘Cobra.’ Shue prevented him from doing so while Staggs and Byrd ran through the debris in search of the other pilot.
They found him on the other side of the ‘Cobra,’ said Staggs.
“We carried him through the wreckage to the ‘Huey,’ and after checking the extent of his injuries decided that we couldn’t wait for someone to come get us,” said Staggs. “We needed to get the pilots medical attention as fast as possible.”
“Capt. Humphrey (who also received a Navy and Marine Corps Medal for these events and is now stationed at Yuma, Ariz.) did a pedal turn and exited the area,” he added. “During the flight we attended to the injured pilots as best we could and we backed up the ‘Huey’ pilots on calls.”
“Half way to the airfield in Jordan we lost engine oil pressure,” said Staggs. “I couldn’t see any oil, so I told the pilots to keep flying. If we had stopped we would have lost one if not both of the injured pilots.”
“The squadron commanding officer was flying while all this was going on, but when he heard what was happening he decided to land early,” said Staggs. “He topped off his tanks and was on hand when we landed to fly the injured pilots to a level five trauma unit in Jordan,” said Staggs.
The two injured pilots, Lt. Col. Robert Curtis, Marine Aircraft Group 26 executive officer, and Capt. Ryan Voltin, currently continuing his rehabilitation at Brooke Army Medical Center in Fort Sam Houston, Texas, survived their injuries.
Voltin, suffered severe burns and now walks on a prosthetic leg, said Curtis. He is doing well and recovering quickly.
Capt. Voltin’s positive energy is helping him to heal quickly, he still has a long way to go, but he can get around well now, said Staggs.
“What they did was impressive and they deserve to be recognized,” said Curtis. “After the bomb hit and their aircraft was lifted into the air and slammed back down they didn’t hesitate. They showed raw courage as they ran through the wreckage to find us and get us into the ‘Huey.’ Even though they knew their aircraft was badly damaged, they knew that Ryan wouldn’t make it if they didn’t get him immediate medical attention. I found out later that the aircraft was so badly damaged that the entire drive train had to be replaced.”