2RHPZ
05-07-2004, 04:36 AM
Tale Of Airman's Courage Draws High Praise By Lance M. Bacon
Times staff writer BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan
" Soldiers here are careful not to use the term
"hero" when describing actions observed on the battlefield. Not to say heroic
actions haven't taken place. But the title is a badge of honor placed on only
the most worthy combatants.
And it's being used to describe one airman. In fact, many commanders here say
this "hero" is worthy of the Air Force Cross. Some even suggest the airman
deserves the nation's highest military honor.
The enlisted tactical air controller, or ETAC, was part of a bloody 14-hour
battle March 4. That day two Army MH-47 Chinook helicopters were brought down
by enemy rocket-propelled grenades and machine-gun fire near the town of
Gardez.
Six of 21 commandos on the first helo were killed, including two airmen and
four soldiers. A Navy SEAL from the second helo was killed when the
32-year-old apparently fell out as the Chinooks retreated from the hostile
fire.
Lt. Col. Kenneth Rozelsky, commander of the 682nd Air Support Operations
Squadron, met some of the survivors when they returned to base.
"[One] came up to me and said "Sir, I lost four guys on this mission. If it
wasn't for your ETAC, we would have lost the whole platoon. I will never go
anywhere without my ETAC again."
"From a Special Forces master sergeant, to me, that's the highest praise you
can get."
The ETAC, who is still in-country, declined an interview and cannot be named
due to operational security reasons. But his story is becoming well known at
this former Soviet air base.
A hero steps forward.
Troops here are familiar with how an outnumbered band of Americans squared
off against al-Qaida forces willing to fight to the death in the Shah-e-Kot
valley. Troops say it was there, amid the frigid, rocky terrain at least
8,000 feet above sea level, that a hero stepped forward, a hero some
commanders and combatants say deserves the Medal of Honor.
Sources say the ETAC took two rounds to the torso, which may have been halted
by his bulletproof vest, and took shrapnel in his shoulder during the battle
of Shah-e-Kot valley.
Still, he ran out of his covered position and placed himself between the
downed helicopter and the enemy. Crouched down behind a rock and partially
exposed to enemy fire, the ETAC stood his ground and called in air strikes
for 14 hours.
F-15E Strike Eagles and F-16 Fighting Falcons pounded al-Qaida positions.
AC-130 gunships, which fly at lower altitudes, soon joined the fight.
According to reports from the area, they strafed al-Qaida positions with
their M102 105 mm howitzers and 25 mm Gatling guns, which indicates the
gunships were AC-130U Spookys.
The ETAC reportedly emptied 14 clips, 420 rounds, during the battle. But his
greatest weapons were circling the skies above and dropping ordnance "danger
close."
U.S. commanders at a mobile command post watched the battle from cameras
mounted on RQ-1 Predator unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. They could see
what one Pentagon official called "a large number of enemy forces" advancing
on the survivors.
One senior commander here saw the Predator footage of the battle and heard
the ETAC's transmissions. He drew a deep breath before he was able to recount
what he saw.
"This airman, this injured airman, put himself between the troops and the
enemy," he said. "I heard him at one point tell a pilot, 'good shot; that one
was about 100 meters from me'. Then he told the pilot to bring it in even
closer."
The officer said he had no doubt the ETAC was knowingly placing himself in
harm's way to keep the enemy off his injured allies.
"If that's not absolute heroism, then I sure as hell don't know what is."
The Medal of Honor was last awarded to Army Master Sgt. Gary I. Gordon and
Army Sgt. 1st Class Randall D. Shughart for their actions Oct. 3, 1993, in
support of Task Force Ranger in Mogadishu, Somalia. Both snipers received the
award posthumously.
Times staff writer BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan
" Soldiers here are careful not to use the term
"hero" when describing actions observed on the battlefield. Not to say heroic
actions haven't taken place. But the title is a badge of honor placed on only
the most worthy combatants.
And it's being used to describe one airman. In fact, many commanders here say
this "hero" is worthy of the Air Force Cross. Some even suggest the airman
deserves the nation's highest military honor.
The enlisted tactical air controller, or ETAC, was part of a bloody 14-hour
battle March 4. That day two Army MH-47 Chinook helicopters were brought down
by enemy rocket-propelled grenades and machine-gun fire near the town of
Gardez.
Six of 21 commandos on the first helo were killed, including two airmen and
four soldiers. A Navy SEAL from the second helo was killed when the
32-year-old apparently fell out as the Chinooks retreated from the hostile
fire.
Lt. Col. Kenneth Rozelsky, commander of the 682nd Air Support Operations
Squadron, met some of the survivors when they returned to base.
"[One] came up to me and said "Sir, I lost four guys on this mission. If it
wasn't for your ETAC, we would have lost the whole platoon. I will never go
anywhere without my ETAC again."
"From a Special Forces master sergeant, to me, that's the highest praise you
can get."
The ETAC, who is still in-country, declined an interview and cannot be named
due to operational security reasons. But his story is becoming well known at
this former Soviet air base.
A hero steps forward.
Troops here are familiar with how an outnumbered band of Americans squared
off against al-Qaida forces willing to fight to the death in the Shah-e-Kot
valley. Troops say it was there, amid the frigid, rocky terrain at least
8,000 feet above sea level, that a hero stepped forward, a hero some
commanders and combatants say deserves the Medal of Honor.
Sources say the ETAC took two rounds to the torso, which may have been halted
by his bulletproof vest, and took shrapnel in his shoulder during the battle
of Shah-e-Kot valley.
Still, he ran out of his covered position and placed himself between the
downed helicopter and the enemy. Crouched down behind a rock and partially
exposed to enemy fire, the ETAC stood his ground and called in air strikes
for 14 hours.
F-15E Strike Eagles and F-16 Fighting Falcons pounded al-Qaida positions.
AC-130 gunships, which fly at lower altitudes, soon joined the fight.
According to reports from the area, they strafed al-Qaida positions with
their M102 105 mm howitzers and 25 mm Gatling guns, which indicates the
gunships were AC-130U Spookys.
The ETAC reportedly emptied 14 clips, 420 rounds, during the battle. But his
greatest weapons were circling the skies above and dropping ordnance "danger
close."
U.S. commanders at a mobile command post watched the battle from cameras
mounted on RQ-1 Predator unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. They could see
what one Pentagon official called "a large number of enemy forces" advancing
on the survivors.
One senior commander here saw the Predator footage of the battle and heard
the ETAC's transmissions. He drew a deep breath before he was able to recount
what he saw.
"This airman, this injured airman, put himself between the troops and the
enemy," he said. "I heard him at one point tell a pilot, 'good shot; that one
was about 100 meters from me'. Then he told the pilot to bring it in even
closer."
The officer said he had no doubt the ETAC was knowingly placing himself in
harm's way to keep the enemy off his injured allies.
"If that's not absolute heroism, then I sure as hell don't know what is."
The Medal of Honor was last awarded to Army Master Sgt. Gary I. Gordon and
Army Sgt. 1st Class Randall D. Shughart for their actions Oct. 3, 1993, in
support of Task Force Ranger in Mogadishu, Somalia. Both snipers received the
award posthumously.