George M James
Military Author
Special Forces Aircraft Hostage Rescue | The Role of Spies Behind the Scenes
In Code Name Wrangler, we address the issue of CQB (Close Quarter Battle) and how to storm a hijacked aircraft to rescue hostages. What you are about to read is 100% technically correct. We also look in detail at other rescue attempts in Code Name Wrangler like the successful Entebbe Raid, the Lufthansa Mogadishu Rescue, and the ill-fated Operation Eagle Claw (Tehran Embassy) as well as the Munich Olympics, the last two mentioned were massive failures. Ironically, storming an aircraft to rescue hostages is bread and butter work for Special Forces. It has been successfully done in history dozens of times.
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For security reasons, none of the rescue methods revealed here will not be known already. But, the way that secret agents are involved with Special Forces during rescues is not generally known. Especially technical services supplied by the spies are used extensively. Before an aircraft is stormed, any rescue, unless on Immediate Action Drills (where the hostages are being murdered, you then go in, blind even, to prevent further massacre) the knights (the Special Forces members storming the aircraft, dressed in black) know exactly what the terrorists look like. Where they are, what weapons and explosives they have available, and what their likely reaction would be. This is not by chance, it is by design.
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And then there are the snipers, waiting patiently for the order to make an end, and the order will arrive.
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We also introduce the thinking behind the scenes, seen from the eyes of the commander, in this case, Angelique Dawson.
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Yes, it was fun writing this book, and to make the rescue harder, I chose a non-passenger type aircraft as the subject to be rescued, a C-130 Hercules. I further added a dangerous cargo of very grisly and venomous snakes into the mixture.
The reasons why rescuing that type of airframe is much more difficult than rescuing an Airbus 320 or Boeing models are discussed in the book.
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There are other GMJ books to read regarding hostage rescues – i.e. Code Name Caribbean where we discuss the rescue of hostages from a taken passenger liner, with a unique way of doing it. Code Name Rebecca 65, the rescue of a train. We also look at rescuing hostages or aircrew from taken cities, behind enemy lines, Code Name Ndebele 14. The books were written to impart knowledge.
Description:
Spymaster extraordinaire, Angelique Dawson is leading and commanding a hostage rescue mission.
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A C-130 Hercules aircraft is taken over by eco-terrorists threatening to release dangerous snakes and killing the hostages if any rescue attempt is made or the demands not met. The C-130 is standing on an apron on the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar. The snakes, if they escape, will devastate the ecological environment as well as the locals.
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Angelique calls in the South African Army Special Forces to assist her and her team, consisting of her later husband, former Police Special Forces Company Commander, Geoffrey Foxtrot and his best friend, former Special Forces Captain Geelslang Peter Ndebele, a legendary officer.
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Angelique is facing other problems as well. She has a female agent, Blondie, on the aircraft, who has infiltrated the terrorist group. She must now be rescued or somehow removed from the aircraft without the rest of the terrorists understanding what is happening, before or during the rescue.
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This aspect is giving Foxtrot, desperately trying to keep Angelique safe, reason to worry. He knows that Angelique Dawson will make an end to this situation and a violent end at that. There will not be long protracted negotiations, at some stage, she will give the order to attack and want to lead the rescue...
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If you wish to read about Covert and Special Forces Operations in Sub-Saharan Africa, the GMJ Books are the place to start. You will learn about covert operations, Special Forces techniques, and military history not known outside the select few.
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Code Name Wrangler is the 17th book in the popular GMJ Series.