代号“Sandy”由美国空军在执行战斗搜索与救援（CSAR）行动时使用，其历史可追溯至1965年末。当时，美国空军A-1“天袭者”飞行员J.W. George上尉从越南边和轮换至泰国乌隆皇家空军基地。当被问及飞行呼号时，他沿用了在边和使用的“Sandy”。此后，该呼号被传承并成为所有执行CSAR任务、保护被击落机组成员的A-1飞机的标准代号。
1972年，随着最后一批“天袭者”从东南亚撤出，Sandy的任务被移交给速度更快的LTV A-7D“海盗II”攻击机。然而，A-7在执行任务时表现吃力，其较高的机动速度使其在进行低空低速视觉搜索和直升机近距离护航方面不如A-1有效。
1970年代后期，A-10“雷电II”（疣猪）接过了CSAR的接力棒。该机型提供了卓越的留空时间、生存能力和火力，非常适合该任务。至今，A-10机体及其飞行员仍沿用“Sandy”呼号。
随着空军加速计划在2029财年前退役A-10，该军种面临着一系列关于谁来接替这一军事领域最专业任务的未解之谜。除了对替代机型及其能力的分析外，这种转型还引发了对飞行员的担忧。近五十年来，这些飞行员接受了战斗搜索与救援任务的专门训练，并在CSAR界建立了深厚的互信。随着国会的监督和立法强调了对CSAR作战准备状态的关注，加之近期在伊朗上空的一次CSAR任务成功将两名F-15E飞行员救回，这些悬而未决的问题带上了新的紧迫感。
The callsign “Sandy,” used by U.S. Air Force aircraft and pilots conducting combat search-and-rescue operations, traces to late 1965. Capt. J.W. “Doc” George, a U.S. Air Force A-1 Skyraider pilot, arrived at Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand, as part of a CSAR replacement rotation from Bien Hoa, South Vietnam. When asked what callsign his flight would use, he suggested the one he used at Bien Hoa: “Sandy.” The name stuck, was passed to his replacement and soon became the standard callsign for all A-1 Skyraiders flying CSAR missions protecting downed aircrews.The Sandy role was later transferred to the faster LTV A-7D Corsair II in 1972 as the last Skyraiders were withdrawn from Southeast Asia. However, the A-7 struggled in the role due to its higher maneuvering speeds, which made it less effective for low-and-slow visual searches and close helicopter escort than the A-1.In the late 1970s, the Corsair passed the CSAR baton to the A-10 Thunderbolt II Warthog, which offered excellent loiter time, survivability and firepower suited to the mission. The A-10 airframe and its pilots still carry the “Sandy” callsign today.As the Air Force accelerates plans to retire the A-10 Thunderbolt II by fiscal year 2029, the service faces a growing set of unanswered questions about what replaces it in combat search and rescue, one of the military’s most specialized mission sets. More than an analysis of replacement aircraft and their capabilities, the transition raises concerns about the pilots in the cockpit, who for nearly five decades have received specialized training in the combat search-and -rescue mission and built trust within the CSAR community. With congressional oversight and legislation underscoring concerns about CSAR operational readiness, and on the heels of a CSAR mission over Iran that brought two F-15E airmen home, the stakes of those unanswered questions have taken on a new sense of urgency.Highly skilled Sandy pilotsIn the past several decades, A-10s have assumed the Sandy role in CSAR operations in the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and most recently in the April 3, 2026, operation that recovered two American F-15E Strike Eagle airmen from Iranian territory. One supporting A-10 sustained heavy battle damage during the mission; its pilot continued flying long enough to eject safely over Kuwait.During an April 6, 2026, press conference detailing that mission, Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, described the role of a Sandy: “A Sandy has one mission: to get to the survivor, bring the rescue force forward, and put themselves between that survivor on the ground and the enemy,” Caine said. “They are committed to this. This is what they live for. And this is what they’ve trained for, for many, many years.”RELATEDThe rescue mission that brought 2 F-15E Strike Eagle crew members homeOnly the most experienced A-10 pilots are selected for Sandy qualification, which requires specialized training in CSAR tactics and procedur
