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A trio of AC-130U gunship crew members was honored with Distinguished Flying Crosses for coming to the rescue of ambushed Navy SEALs in Iraq.

Maj. David Torraca, Capt. Timothy Hood and Staff Sgt. J. H. Smith, all of the 4th Special Operations Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla., received the honors June 20 at Hurlburt. Seven other crew members received Air Medals.

Navy Lt. j.g. Don Nichols, one of the eight SEALs on the ground during that mission, attended the ceremony. “Without your guys, our guys would have been killed,” Nichols said in Air Force release about the ceremony. “They saved three of my comrades.”

The AC-130U Spooky was on a mission Sept. 12, 2007, when its aircrew spotted suspicious people moving away from the village. The gunship is equipped with an array of sensors to track people moving on the ground.

The aircrew radioed the SEAL team about the suspicious activities, and eight team members were dispatched. The insurgents opened fire on the SEALs, wounding three, and the gunship was summoned to protect the sailors. It had rounds on target within 23 seconds of the call.

The gunship’s wall of fire allowed the SEALs to get their wounded comrades to a medical evacuation helicopter. Then, the Spooky went after the insurgents.

“It’s missions like this that make this job that much more rewarding,” said Torraca, now retired from the service.