Operation Bevel Edge

In July 1997 the Air Force supported noncombatant evacuation operations during Operation Bevel Edge in Cambodia. Aircraft deployed to Thailand during Operation Bevel Edge as civil war erupted in Cambodia. Though the crews were never further tasked to perform the noncombatant evacuation they had trained for, they established 24-hour alert procedures to launch mission-ready forces at a moment's notice. Marines from the Third Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF) deployed to Utapao, Thailand, to support a USCINCPAC JTF mission. The 31st MEU(SOC) was placed on alert for a possible NEO from Cambodia.