Air Commando SSgt Anissa Shero served as a loadmaster aboard an MC-130 Combat Talon II, call sign Chariot-55, during Operation Enduring Freedom. On June 12, 2002, Chariot-55 was tasked with extracting a three-man US Special Forces team from a dirt runway near the village of Sardeh Band, Afghanistan.
Once on the ground, SSgt Shero and fellow loadmaster TSgt Sean Corlew, both from the 15th Special Operations Squadron, performed an engine-running on-load of the team and equipment. After an aborted takeoff attempt, SSgt Shero discovered two soldiers unrestrained and told them to buckle up. Shortly after, the aircraft took off again, this time crashing. Shero, TSgt Corlew, and US Army Sergeant First Class Peter Tycz died. The two soldiers SSgt Shero assisted both survived.
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