During a 2003 combat mission over Baghdad, U.S. Air Force pilot Kim Campbell faced a life-or-death scenario when her A-10 Thunderbolt II was struck by heavy enemy fire. The attack destroyed the aircraft’s tail and crippled its hydraulic systems, leaving most flight controls inoperable and forcing her into manual reversion—flying using only mechanical backups.
With only seconds to decide, Campbell chose to remain with the aircraft. Drawing on intensive training, steady instincts, and sheer determination, she stabilized the severely damaged jet and navigated it safely back to base over hostile territory. Her actions prevented the loss of both the aircraft and sensitive technology, marking her as one of the Iraq War’s most exceptional combat pilots.
Campbell was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for her “exceptional courage and airmanship.”
Kim Campbell’s A-10 Warthog is struck by an enemy missile
On April 7, 2003, U.S. Air Force pilot Kim Campbell set out toward Baghdad with her flight lead, Lt. Col. Rick “Bino” Turner, intending to strike an Iraqi command post. Midway through the mission, a sudden call for assistance forced a change in plans: troops from the 3rd Infantry Division were trapped and urgently required close air support.
Flying over the vast city, Campbell and Turner navigated an extremely hazardous environment. They were tasked with executing precise attacks while avoiding civilian harm, all beneath a sky clouded with heavy cover and under constant threat from surface-to-air missiles. Despite the immense pressure, both aviators remained focused, maintaining exacting control amid the chaos below.
Campbell carried out multiple attack runs, delivering rockets and relentless 30mm cannon fire against enemy positions. As the operation seemed to wind down, disaster struck. A missile impacted her A-10 Warthog, and erupted in an ominous orange fireball that tore through the aircraft and disabled its hydraulic systems. The plane pitched violently into a sharp, uncontrolled descent, forcing Campbell into an immediate battle for survival—testing her skills, courage, and composure to the fullest.
Kim Campbell was trained in how to manually fly the A-10 Warthog
Drawing on her training and instincts, Kim Campbell concentrated on keeping her damaged A-10 under control. Recalling the emergency, she said, “In an emergency like that, I felt like time slowed down. I knew I had to take quick action but I also had to figure out what was going on in my cockpit.”
Once Campbell determined that manually flying the aircraft was her only option, she turned to one of the A-10’s defining design features. While most aircraft cannot continue flying after a complete loss of hydraulic power, the A-10 is equipped with a manual reversion system, a mechanical backup that allows the pilot to retain control of the aircraft in a serious emergency.
Flying the A-10 under manual reversion, however, is extremely challenging. A 1982 report from the U.S. Air Force Human Resources Laboratory described “aircraft control in the manual flight mode” as “exceptionally demanding of piloting skills,” underscoring the level of ability Campbell needed to bring the aircraft safely under control.
A quick lesson while under fire
Campbell had to relearn how to manually fly while under anti-aircraft fire. Fortunately, her piloting skills were sharp enough that it wasn’t overly challenging for her.“Once I flipped the switch to manual reversion, I don’t remember it being overly difficult,” she said. “I was just so relieved the airplane was finally climbing and responding.”
After the critical hit, Campbell and Turner managed to exit the combat zone largely unharmed, and she manually flew the A-10 for 300 miles back to Kuwait.
Landing manually is a completely different ball game
Landing an A-10 manually is an especially daunting task, made even more difficult without hydraulics, as precise adjustments become much harder. The manual reversion checklist explicitly warns pilots to “attempt only under ideal conditions.”
Kim Campbell, however, faced anything but ideal conditions. Her aircraft had sustained extensive damage, peppered with bullet holes and a severely compromised right horizontal stabilizer. After carefully weighing the risks with Turner, they decided to attempt a manual landing. Reflecting on the event, Campbell shared, “[Turner’s] actions after I was hit were absolutely critical. I was so focused on flying the airplane, getting it under control, whereas he had more awareness of what was going on around me.”
Campbell successfully landed the A-10 and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for her heroism. Lt. Col. Mike Millen, Chief of the 355th Fighter Wing Commander’s Action Group, praised her skill, saying, “Kim landed that jet with no hydraulics better than I land the A-10 every day with all systems operational.”
Interestingly, when Campbell later practiced similar manual landings in simulators, the outcomes were not as successful.
Kim Campbell went right back to it
Even though she showed bravery in the moment, Kim Campbell confessed that she was truly frightened inside. “When I go back and listen to the audio recording [of the flight], I can hear the fear, I just didn’t have time to think about it,” she recalled. Nevertheless, she climbed back into the cockpit the next day.
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Now retired, Campbell logged 1,800 hours of flight time and completed over 100 combat missions in the A-10. For her, it’s all about being an excellent pilot. “I never wanted to be labeled as a female fighter pilot,” she explained. “I wanted to be the best pilot. So just work hard and be credible. Be good at what you do.”