The moment is still seared into my memory and remains a defining point of my professional life.
It was late on Aug. 24, 2021. I had just returned from flying another evacuation mission during the Afghanistan withdrawal when I caught a glimpse of a television screen. A Taliban spokesman was speaking.
At the time, we were already racing against the clock to meet an arbitrary Aug. 31 deadline for evacuating thousands of people. On the ground, we all understood the reality of the situation. It would be impossible to get everyone out safely under that time constraint, which is why negotiations about extending the timeline were ongoing.
WHEN IN CONGRESS, I WILL CONFRONT RADICAL ISLAMISM WITHOUT HESITATION
Then the Taliban delivered its ultimatum: America would be gone by Aug. 31.
I remember the anger that arose in me. We were already pushing aircraft and crews to their limits. Lives were on the
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