Pictured is Air Force Master Sergeant —and Jamestown native — Greg Gibbs, who was recently awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions during a 2011 aerial rescue mission in Afghanistan. Submitted photo

Air Force Master Sergeant Greg Gibbs is not one to boast about heroism. In fact, he doesn’t much care for the limelight at all.

But in 2011, a courageous aerial rescue mission over Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, led the 30-year-old Jamestown native to not only risk his life, but get awarded the oldest and highest military aviation award as a result.

On Friday, Gibbs was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross at a ceremony on Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The award recognizes Gibbs’ actions as a HH60G Pavehawk Aerial Gunner during a May 26, 2011, rescue mission in Afghanistan. The mission: Rescue a group of Army Pathfinders that found themselves badly hit — and surrounded — by a valley-full of improvised explosive devices or IEDs.

“This was only my second scramble-launch rescue mission and it was the first time I knew we were launching to recover (soldiers killed in action),” Gibbs said. “(In my head), it was mainly about getting there and getting those dudes out as fast as possible.”

While Gibbs’ unit was trained for these kinds of incidents, this mission had a bit of a twist — one that required him and his crew to make a number of critical decisions.

“We accepted the extreme risk of hovering a helicopter in deteriorating weather to accomplish a precision high-angle hoist directly over several IEDs networked to a remote trigger,” Gibbs said. “We nearly crashed, continued and then calculated we could skip our fuel divert and arrive back to Kandahar Airfield on only our emergency fuel reserve — less than 5 minutes remaining —  risking engine flameout over enemy-held territory.”

Gibbs’ crew rescued three individuals during the mission, one of whom would later die of his injuries.

The incident involving the Pathfinders would reportedly tie for the fourth-deadliest day for U.S. forces since the war began in late 2001.

“I get it … the award is a big deal. But it’s not a celebration,” Gibbs said. “This was probably the gravest scene imaginable. This wasn’t just a guy losing a leg — this was stuff nobody should ever see.”

Gibbs’ mother, Lisa, said she wasn’t even aware of this mission until Gibbs was finally announced as the award recipient.

“He’s such a modest kid that we didn’t know about it until he actually was going to be presented the award … he rarely talks about that stuff,” said Lisa Gibbs. “(When I learned about it), all I thought about was the risk that these guys really do take. I’m very proud of him.”

According to Gibbs, the reason for the delayed recognition was due to the mission being erroneously submitted as an “Air Medal.” His Aircraft Commander and Deployed Squadron Commander needed to submit an upgrade package with an endorsement from a Deployed Wing Commander.

Gibbs is currently a flying training unit instructor with the 512th Rescue Squadron in New Mexico. His service includes three tours in Afghanistan, one tour in Iraq and one tour in Africa.