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A canceled mission, a long flight home
Growing up, Air Force Maj. Ed Redman listened to his grandfather tell stories about the devastating effect of German strategic bombing on Bristol, England during the World War II blitz.
On the last night of the stealth bombers' war in Iraq, Redman led a massive flight of American bombers against targets near Baghdad. An Air Force academy graduate and 14-year veteran of the Air Force, he'd flown B-52s and B-1 bombers before graduating to the B-2. This was only Redman's second combat mission. The first came on the second night of the war.
As package commander, Redman also was responsible for B-52s, EA-6Bs and F-16 CJs. Redman could also communicate with AWACs, jumbo jets with huge radar domes on top that serve as traffic control planes in the sky, as well as Air Force controllers on the ground who directed bombers to their targets. He was responsible for making sure the bombers were synchronized, had adequate cover, and that no other planes were near the intended targets.
With ground forces quickly advancing toward Baghdad, he knew before takeoff that his targets would quickly become outdated. And he worried about hitting friendly forces or civilians.
The sky was completely free of Iraqi anti-aircraft fire as they approached Baghdad. By now, half the city was occupied by coalition forces. With only 30 to 45 minutes left before reaching their destination, the B-2s received a new set of instructions: prepare to strike an airfield near Baghdad. "That was awfully close for us," says Redman. They had no images of the new target. They had to trust the target selection process.
They flew within 40 miles - only four or five minutes flying time - when they received new orders yet again: stand down and head home to Missouri. American forces were moving too fast to safely drop the bombs. The B-2s' war was finished.
"It's a little bit of a letdown," says Redman. "Not because we didn't get to blow something up. But because so much effort goes into preparing for a mission."
The two B-2s made the trip together - flying a few miles apart, close enough that pilots could see each other out the cockpit window. Redman napped twice, the longer stretch lasting 90 minutes. He occupied the rest of the time filling out paperwork.
As they approached US airspace, FAA air traffic controllers welcomed them home. "Have a safe flight and get some sleep," Redman recalls one saying.
Reuniting with families
Having chased the sunrise almost all the way home, they arrived at Whiteman on April 8 to an overcast, chilly sky. The reception on the ground was far warmer. Redman's wife and two children were waiting for him in the parking lot outside the squadron's brick building on base. His older son thought he'd just returned from Las Vegas. Redman told him he was in Nevada, where he goes once a year for training. His younger son was just happy to see him. His wife, though, took one look at his tan flight suit and knew he'd taken a detour over Iraq on the way home.
Ketchen returned a couple weeks later, flying a charted commercial airliner to Kansas City via Bahrain and London. His family was waiting for him at the Kansas City airport. The stewardesses and pilots were extra gracious.
Even so, Ketchen says he would have preferred returning in his own plane. "It's much better to fly your own airplane to your own airfield," he says.
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