Explore the Flight into Afghanistan about the Background of this artwork, America's Response Monument.

The 12-man Operational Detachment Alpha 595 (ODA 595) team, along with two Air Force combat controllers, were the second group of Task Force Dagger to enter Afghanistan. In the first operation of its kind, they were flown from a former Soviet airbase, now named the Karshi-Khanabad Air Base, in Uzbekistan. More than 300 kilometers (190 mi) were flown across the 16,000 feet (4,900 m) Hindu Kush mountains in zero-visibility conditions by a SOAR MH-47E Chinook helicopter. They were dropped onto a farmer's field at 02:00 on October 19, 2001, about 80 km (50 mi) south of Mazar-i-Sharif in the Dari-a-Souf Valley. The team arrived only 39 days after the Al-Qaeda attack on the World Trade Center for what they thought would be a year-long stay. They linked up with the Northern Alliance, led by General Dostum.
Air Force combat controller World Trade Center Karshi-Khanabad Air Base Dostum MH-47E Northern Alliance Mazar-i-Sharif Uzbekistan Operational Detachment Alpha 595 General Dostum Al-Qaeda Hindu Kush Detachment A