Objective Rhino 25th Anniversary T-Shirt

On the night of October 19–20, 2001, nearly 200 Rangers from 3/75 conducted a combat jump onto Objective Rhino, a remote airfield southwest of Kandahar, Afghanistan. Four USAF MC-130 Combat Talons carried the assault force to Vengeance Drop Zone, where the Rangers exited at approximately 800 feet in darkness following preparatory air strikes. The mission was to seize the airfield and establish a forward arming and refueling point supporting special operations raids in southern Afghanistan, including the simultaneous assault on Objective Gecko.

On the ground, the Rangers secured the runway and cleared the nearby compound. A tactical PSYOP element from Bco 9th POB(A) accompanied the force, broadcasting surrender appeals over loudspeakers. USAF Special Tactics Airmen jumped alongside the Rangers; Combat Controllers assessed the landing strip, coordinated aircraft movements, and worked with AC-130 gunships overhead. Their role helped turn a seized airfield deep inside Afghanistan into a usable staging and refueling site for the joint force.

Helicopters from 160th SOAR(A), supporting the operation at Objective Gecko, used Rhino to refuel and rearm. Once the runway was secure, an MC-130 brought in personnel from the Joint Medical Augmentation Unit (JMAU), who treated two Rangers injured during the parachute landing. After completing the mission, the force withdrew aboard MC-130s. The wider operation also cost the lives of two Rangers when a supporting Black Hawk crashed at Objective Honda in Pakistan. Rhino marked an early demonstration of the joint force’s ability to enter, operate, and withdraw from Taliban-held territory.