KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — An aircrew with the Tennessee National Guard received a prestigious military award after 11 members conducted an operation while countries in the Middle East fired missiles at each other.
The 134th Air Refueling Wing, based at McGhee Tyson Airport, received the Distinguished Flying Cross — the highest military award for valor in the sky. The crew said the mission was a part of the job. The plane was flown by Major Stacy Sells during an operation to refuel fighter jets while in the air.
In the middle of the operation, Iran launched 300 ballistic missiles headed to Israel. Captain James Spearman said the missile launch didn't stop the crew, and they began considering what would happen if there was a response.
"We knew there was going to be some sort of response. We didn't know exactly what it would be," he said. "Ultimately, we wanted to go and do our job."
The crew has day jobs outside of their uniforms. Some service members are also firefighters, business owners and commercial pilots. But in the middle of the fight, they were a team.
"When we got up there, it just seemed like a standard flight like we've been doing," said Senior Airman Jonah Parham. "It's surreal that we got such a big award."
The aircrew also said training in the skies while above Tennessee kicked in overseas. The award is for heroism in the sky, but the crew said they were just doing their job.
"The local missions in East Tennessee area giving us the training and confidence we need," said Sells.