The United States vowed to “stay the course” in Afghanistan after 31 US soldiers were killed when, according to local officials, the Taliban shot down their helicopter.
It is the biggest single loss of coalition lives since the war was started a decade ago when US and other international forces invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban in 2001 after the September 11 attacks.
The Taliban claimed its fighters shot down the Chinook during a night operation in the Saydabad district in the eastern province of Wardak.
Are these 31 lives equal to 1 Bin Laden? I think not. They are worth a lot more. These guys are heroes and should have been sent home after their mission. How sad for their families.
mhmac13, these guys were from the same unit that found bin Laden, but from what I’ve read, they are not the actual men that were on that mission.
It’s so early. Family members need to be notified. It takes time to sort out what actually happened during chaotic engagements such as this. We may never know what really happened in this incident–perhaps for good reason. But, you can be sure of this: These are extremely dedicated and talented young (and not so young) men. We owe it to them to keep their memory alive as long as we live. And let no future generation fail to speak their names in reverent prayers of thanksgiving. Also, a word of caution: In my opinion it would be highly (HIGHLY) unusual for this many SF team members (plus their gear) to pile into one Chinook.
Thanks for their lives and devotion. Prayers for their loved ones.
“In my opinion it would be highly (HIGHLY) unusual for this many SF team members (plus their gear) to pile into one Chinook.”
This is a “to the point” and astute observation.
The decision to use a single Chinook must have been made due to a lack of other air assets at the moment and a sense of urgency on the part of the tactical specwar on-site commanders(s) to prosecute a particular very high-priority target.
At the moment, it must have seemed, with a lack of other lift asset availability, to be the “only way to go” but in armchair retrospect, it was not a good decision.
If four or five pre-briefed and specwar qualified smaller helicopters had been available, then that would have been the way to go. But now we are talking about the ideal world and not the real world.
A single Chinook puts too many high-value assets into a single aircraft that is relatively slow, a big target and not very maneuverable. It provides only a main rear door and side door points of egress stepping/jumping off the helicopter and for fast roping and as the specwar operators egress provides a single target for the enemy forces defending the objective area, etc.
I have been tactically transported in both Huey’s (HU-1Bs) (not in specwar insertions) and Chinooks, and by far, the Huey was the best and safest way to be inserted and extracted from the objective area.
Afghanistan: “Where empires go to die.”
Here is more information regarding this loss,
“The Chinook involved in Friday’s attack – a US twin-engined helicopter mainly used to transport troops – was hit by a shoulder-held grenade as it returned from a night raid on a militant gathering in the Tangi Valley in Wardak province, west of Kabul.
The Tangi Valley, dubbed ‘Death Valley’, is known for being one of the most hostile corridors in Afghanistan. The volatile Wardak province is an infamous insurgent stronghold.”
“Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2023123/Special-forces-helicopter-shot-Afghanistan-mission-rescue-fellow-Navy-SEALs.html#ixzz1UO8GrVNs.”
So according to the Daily Mail, the tragedy occurred upon ‘extraction’ and not upon ‘insertion.’
This makes the tactical decision to use a Chinook even more difficult to understand. ‘Extraction’ of a tactical element from a location in the middle of enemy territory is even more dangerous than ‘insertion,’ especially if the elements of surprise, cover and deception have been lost.
This is truly a tragedy of major proportions for the specwar community. They and their loved ones need our prayers, now.
Amen brother AnglicanFirst. Losing these men of valor, and I’m not using hyperbole here, is something that will be felt for generations henceforth. I say that reluctantly because I don’t wish to give the enemy cause, however brief (and trust me, it will be ever so brief) for self satisfaction. Suffice it to say, the dimensions of this tragedy will likely never be known to us mere mortals. Among those who have been there, in Wardak, who have fought in this troubled region, the pain of losing brothers in arms will be particularly sharp. And, though I am quite sure this will be avenged, nothing can ever redeem the loss of these men. 100 Osama Bin Ladens wouldn’t come close.