![An Afghan Air Force helicopter is pictured through the shattered glass of another aircraft near a hangar at the airport in Kabul on August 31, 2021, after the US pulled all its troops out of the country to end a brutal 20-year war -- one that started and ended with the hardline Islamist in power. (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR / AFP) (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)](https://cdn.statically.io/img/theintercept.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1234972408.jpg?fit=768%2C512)
Losing Afghanistan
When the Taliban Took Kabul, an Afghan Pilot Had to Choose Between His Family and His Country
The U.S. apparently had no plan in place to stop the Taliban from seizing Afghan Air Force planes and pilots if the republic collapsed.