At the kickoff of Operation Enduring Freedom, Master Sgt. Kevin Vance was assigned as a terminal attack controller with the 17th Air Support Operations Squadron, Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia. During three deployments to Afghanistan and two to Iraq, he repeatedly prosecuted the mission by identifying enemy positions and directing successful airstrikes in "danger close" conditions in the mountain ranges of Afghanistan, 10,000 ft above sea level. His work with the Army's 1st Ranger Battalion earned him a Silver Star, Bronze Star, Bronze Star with Valor, Purple Heart and Army Commendation Medals. Vance was instrumental in joint special operations on Takur Ghar (also know as Rescue on Roberts Ridge), coordinating mortar fire to mark enemy positions and calling in close air support for multiple airstrikes. Born in Vancouver, Washington, he entered the Air Force in 1994. After completing Tactical Air Command and Control training at Hurlburt Field, Florida, he was assigned to the Army's 2nd Armored Calvary at Fort Polk, Louisiana. He received air assault training at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and graduated from airborne school at Fort Benning, Georgia. He saw service in Kuwait in 1997 and later at Camp Casey in Korea, before arriving at Hunter AAF in 1999. Vance is currently assigned to the 70th Flying Training Squadron at the US Air Force Academy.
