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AC-130 In Support Of Trapped Operators Restricted Due To Fears Of '€˜Collateral Damage'
[Daily Caller] An AC-130 gunship was allegedly prevented from providing air support to a group of U.S. special forces under heavy fire from the Taliban due to fears that it could cause collateral damage, according to a report from SOFRep.com and a congressman's recent inquiry to the Department of Defense.

The soldiers from the U.S. Army's 19th Special Forces Group came under heavy fire from Taliban forces as they accompanied Afghan Forces on a mission in the town of Marjah in Helmand province as part of Operation Resolute Support Jan. 5.
Interesting. Members of the same unit as LTC Gibson, the SF officer who was ordered not to go to Benghazi.
According to one report, close air support for the 12-hour firefight that ensued was delayed and limited despite the availability of the gunship operating in the area, according to Jack Murphy, writing for SOFRep.com.

"Eventually, the command allowed AC-130 to fire a whopping two 40mm rounds into an open field," wrote Murphy, a former special forces soldier, "a weak show of force to the Taliban."

Army Col. Michael Lawhorn, spokesman for Operation Resolute Support, flatly denied these claims in emails to The Daily Caller News Foundation. "We conducted 12 airstrikes against various threats to the force ... [with] a combination of platforms," says Lawhorn. Included in the strikes were F-16 fighters and an AC-130, according to a report by Stars and Stripes.

By the time U.S. forces were reinforced, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Matthew McClintock of the 19th Special Forces Group was dead, while two other U.S service members and an unnamed number of Afghans were wounded. In addition, a helicopter sent to evacuate the wounded took small-arms and mortar fire and ended up grounded, though it's unclear if the grounding was due to an in-air mishap, as some reports have indicated.

Related: Navy SEAL Congressman Leads Inquiry into Obama’s Policies Leaving Troops In Harms Way in Marjah, Afghanistan



Posted by: Besoeker 2016-01-08
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=441404