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  • Monster Mash Team 4 finishes an obstacle course carrying 50-pound fuel containers at Hurlburt Field, Fla., May 12, 2016. Monster Mash is a long-standing Special Tactics training tradition, consisting of an obstacle course where special operators complete timed scenarios at different stations of core mission training. The event was held in honor of Chief Master Sgt. Bruce W. Dixon, the command chief of the 24th Special Operations Wing, who is retiring after a 30-year career as a combat controller. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Ryan Conroy)

    Sprint to the finish: Chief Master Sgt. Bruce W. Dixon retires following 30-year career

    Chief Master Sgt. Bruce W. Dixon, the command chief of the 24th Special Operations Wing, retired May 13, 2016, after a 30-year career as a combat controller. In total, he spent ten of those thirty years away from his family, consistently serving his nation's call in dangerous ground combat and training. He is one of a handful of military members to
  • 26th Special Tactics Squadron members prepare for their final touch-down onto a landing zone March 25, 2016, at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M. Air Commandos with the 26th STS performed routine practice jumps as part of maintaining operational readiness. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Alexx Pons)

    Special Tactics Airmen train to infiltrate via free fall

    Members of the 26th Special Tactics Squadron conducted routine jump training March 25 just over the Cannon flightline, training to infiltrate hostile or remote areas where it is not possible for aircraft to land. While jumpers loaded onto an MC-130J Commando II, a ground crew worked quickly to establish a landing zone. And with safety consistently
  • Capt. Matthew D. Roland, Class of 2010 of the U.S. Air Force Academy, was killed in action in Afghanistan, Aug. 26, 2015. He posthumously received the Silver Star medal for his actions the day he died, when he acted quickly to save the lives of his teammates. (Courtesy photo/Released)

    ‘One for Capt. Matthew Roland!’: Cadets, Special Tactics Airmen honor fallen Academy grad

    More than 150 Special Tactics Airmen and USAFA cadets honored fallen Academy graduate and Silver Star medal recipient Capt. Matthew D. Roland, dedicating a memorial display and completing memorial push-ups in formation here Mar. 30. "We are honored to share this day with Captain Roland's family, his teammates, and the long line of Cadet Squadron
  • A 321st Special Tactics Squadron combat controller hammers into place a distance marker before the start of an austere landing exercise at Plovdiv, Bulgaria, Feb. 9, 2016. Combat controllers supported the training for multiple aircraft deployed to Bulgaria as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, which aims to assure the U.S.’s commitment to the security and stability of Europe. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Luke Kitterman)

    Special Tactics Airmen strengthen forward capability in Bulgaria

    Airmen from the 352nd Special Operations Wing supported deterrence-specific training in conjunction with the 74th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron at Plovdiv, Bulgaria, Feb. 9-11, 2016. A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft pilots, assigned to the 74th EFS and currently deployed to Bulgaria as part of the European Theater Security Package, performed
  • Special Tactics Airmen carry 20 batons during a memorial march to Hurlburt Field, Fla., Oct. 13, 2015. The team of 20 Special Tactics Airmen started at 2 a.m. on Oct. 4, from Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, and marched 812 miles through five states to meet with the gold star families and end the memorial march with a ceremony on Hurlburt Field. Each two-man team walked approximately 90 miles during the 10-day trek while carrying a 50-pound ruck sack and a commemorative baton engraved with a fallen Special Tactics Airman's name. The memorial march is only held when a Special Tactics operator is killed in action that year, but honors all 19 Special Tactics pararescuemen and combat controllers who have been killed in action since 2001. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Kai White/Released)

    Honoring the fallen: Special Tactics Airmen march 812 miles

    After more than 800 miles on the road, 20 Special Tactics Airmen finished their journey to honor fallen teammates, crossing through the gate here with families of those Special Tactics Airmen killed in combat..The march was held specifically for Capt. Matthew Roland, special tactics officer, and Staff Sgt. Forrest Sibley, combat controller, who
  • A U.S. Air Force combat control Airman from the 320th Special Tactics Squadron, Kadena Air Base, prepares to submerge during an amphibious operations exercise Sept. 22, 2015, off the West Coast of Okinawa, Japan. Special tactics Airmen are trained to execute a variety of infiltration methods that enable them to be inserted into environments that may otherwise be unreachable. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman John Linzmeier)

    Special Tactics Airmen execute amphibious training

    Airmen from the 320th Special Tactics Squadron conducted an amphibious training operation along the West Coast of Okinawa Sept. 22 - 24 to refresh qualifications and retain proficiency in various special tactics skill sets.The training entailed day and nighttime helo-casting in cohesion with HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter support from the 33rd Rescue
  • The remains of Capt. Matthew Roland are taken to his funeral service and final resting place at Arlington National Cemetery, Va., Sept. 18, 2015. Roland was fatally wounded in an attack near a vehicle checkpoint at Camp Antonik, a forward operating base in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Roland was a special tactics officer at the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Nichelle Anderson released)

    A man to emulate: Honoring a fallen Special Tactics Officer

    Capt. Matthew D. Roland was the guy people depended on, turned to, looked up to. He was, to quote a teammate, “the kind of man other men strive to emulate.”He was a “man’s man” who could fix or build anything. He was the guy who “could fit in any crowd” and “lead any team.” This is how Roland was remembered as he was laid to rest at Arlington
  • Airmen salute during Capt. Matthew D. Roland and Staff Sgt. Forrest B. Sibley’s memorial service, Sept. 14, 2015, at Hurlburt Field, Fla. The two Special Tactics Airmen, who had recently deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Freedom's Sentinel, were shot at a vehicle checkpoint at Camp Antonik, Afghanistan, Aug. 26, and died of wounds sustained in the attack, were honored in a private memorial. Both Special Tactics Airmen will be buried with full military honors. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Ryan Conroy/Released)

    Two fallen Special Tactics Airmen honored, remembered

    More than 1,000 family members, friends and teammates from around the country gathered here Sept. 14 to honor and remember two Special Tactics Airmen who were killed in action last month in an insider attack.As the procession of family members departed the memorial, nearly 2,000 Air Commandos lined the roads and saluted to honor Capt. Matthew D.
  • The 21st Special Tactics Squadron honored a fallen comrade from their squadron, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Forrest Sibley, in a private ceremony, Pope Army Airfield, N.C., Sept. 3. Sibley was a combat controller who had recently deployed to Afghanistan in support of OPERATION Freedom’s Sentinel when he and another Special tactics Airmen were shot at a vehicle checkpoint at Camp Antonik, Afghanistan, Aug. 26, 2015. He and Capt. Matthew Roland, special tactics officer from 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, died of wounds sustained in the attack Aug. 27. (U.S. Air Force photo by Marvin Krause/Released)

    Fallen Special Tactics hero honored at squadron tribute

    The coolest guy in the room. A knight and a warrior on the battlefield. A highly decorated combat veteran who went to great lengths to mentor young Airmen. Someone with a quick wit, an infectious laugh and a sense of humor that was “second to none.”That’s how members of the 21st Special Tactics Squadron described a fallen comrade, U.S. Air Force
  • The 21st Special Tactics Squadron honored a fallen comrade from their squadron, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Forrest Sibley, in a private ceremony, Pope Army Airfield, N.C., Sept. 3. Sibley was a combat controller who had recently deployed to Afghanistan in support of OPERATION Freedom’s Sentinel when he and another Special Tactics Airmen were shot at a vehicle checkpoint at Camp Antonik, Afghanistan, Aug. 26, 2015. He and Capt. Matthew Roland, special tactics officer from 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, died of wounds sustained in the attack Aug. 27. (U.S. Air Force photo by Marvin Krause/Released).

    Fallen Special Tactics hero honored at squadron tribute

    The coolest guy in the room. A knight and a warrior on the battlefield. A highly decorated combat veteran who went to great lengths to mentor young Airmen. Someone with a quick wit, an infectious laugh and a sense of humor that was “second to none.”That’s how members of the 21st Special Tactics Squadron described a fallen comrade, U.S. Air Force
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