Ready for takeoff, 2002

(Scott Schonauer/Stars and Stripes)

Khost, Afghanistan, Aug. 14, 2002: A U.S. soldier stands by a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter before taking off. For the first time, U.S. soldiers began aerial vehicle checks near the Pakistan border, an area where Taliban and al-Qaida members were believed to have been regrouping.

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