“Look, we have stirred up a hornet’s nest here…

We’re fighting the entire city. I want every vehicle possible that’s got four wheels and armor. Get it — get everything.” – General Willian Garrison

Minutes after Super Six-One had been shot down, another helicopter (Super Six-Eight, if I recall) brought in the CSAR (Combat Search And Rescue) team, who began to rope down around a corner to the crash site. The team fast-roped down to the ground. It was only when the last member to go on the ropes, Air Force Tech. Sgt. Tim Wilkinson, who noticed that they had left their medical kits in the helicopter (they were suppose to be the first things out of the helicopter). He had to wait until his fellow CSAR members were clear before kicking them out of the helicopter. The timing was thrown off, leaving the Blackhawk vulnerable for longer than anticipated. An RPG exploded along the left side of the helicopter, and pilot CWO Dan Jollota was about to pull his craft out of the hot-zone, when one of the crew chiefs told him that they still had people on the ropes.

Fighting his urge to leave, CWO Jollota made the Blackhawk hover there, under fire, while Master Sgt. Scott Fales and Wilkinson fast-roped down. Fales was so focused on the decent that he never felt the rope pull up and away for a split second. CWO Jollota’s calm had saved both of their lives.

Jollota could hear the rotor blades whistling from the shrapnel, but he waited until he saw the men touch down to take the Blackhawk out of the area. Trailing smoke, he managed to land the helicopter back at the base.

———————————————————————————————————————-

Wilkinson rounded a corner with the bags and saw the wreck of Super Six-One. Just then, a Ranger (Sgt. Alan Barton) shot two Somalis. One had an M16 Assault Rifle, which Barton picked up, loaded, then took with him back toward the crash site.

At the chopper itself, Master Sgt. Fales was trying to look into the craft to see if there were any survivors, when he was hit in the leg. Wilkinson helped Fales get to cover, then went to look inside the helicopter, where he saw Sgt. James McMahon (whose face was badly cut and bruised from the crash) pulling out the body of Co-Pilot CWO Donovan “Bull” Briley, who was already gone.

McMahon bent down to check Briley, and said he was dead. Wilkinson told him to get some treatment for his face, and went to check himself to confirm the statement.  He checked both CWO Briley and CWO Wolcott; dead. He then climbed into the craft to see if there was a way to pull Wolcott (who had the dashboard smashed against him when the helicopter crashed) out of the Blackhawk. Since the helicopter had landed on the front-left side, it had pinned Wolcott and buried itself in the ground. They would get him out, it was just a matter of how.

Climbing on the top of the bird (which was now its’ side), Sgt. Wilkinson noticed a scrap of camo, and a glove. Both of which belonged to Staff Sgt. Ray Dowdy, who was the left-side gunner, and had still been in his seat. After a bit of struggling,  Sgt. First Class Bob Mabry (a medic) and Sgt. Tim Wilkinson had pulled Dowdy out of his seat. A few seconds later, a hail of gunfire tore through the helicopter. Dowdy had the tip of his index finger and part of his middle finger shot off, while Wilkinson had been nicked in the face and arm, and Mabry had been hit in his hand.  Mabry had started tearing off the bullet-resistant floor panels to cover where the bullets had gone through. They made a small tunnel near the rear-left (bottom) side that was still above ground, to get out of the helicopter.

They took the floor panels and made a small barricade near the rear of the Blackhawk where a Casualty Collection point had been made by Tech. Sgt. Scott Fales, who was firing down the street toward the attacking Somalis. He didn’t realise that a small barricade had been made until Wilkinson had told him.

———————————————————————————————————–

Staff Sgt. Edd Yurek and half of Chalk Two were still at the original target building after the other half of Chalk Two went to the crash site, about three blocks away.  Afraid that the force had left without them, and having no idea what to do, Yurek radioed Chalk Leader First Sgt. Tom DiTomasso for help. The reply that came back was “You need to find your way to me.”

Reluctantly, he decided to take the rest of the Chalk and head to the crash. As they started to move, gunmen immediately opened up on them.  At intersections, two men would lay down heavy suppressive fire while the others moved across the street.  They got near the crash site when Yurek saw Chalk Two’s M-60 Gunner Shawn Nelson behind a car across the street, and DiTomasso behind a green Volkswagen. Yurek sprinted to DiTomasso, and as soon as he got behind the car, a big gun started tearing up the car.

Nelson told them the gun was further up the street, so Yurek moved a few bodies (dead Somali gunmen) and made a makeshift barricade to see into the street. He saw the weapon on a tripod, and got his LAW (Light Anti-Tank Weapon, which was also disposable).  He flipped up the sights and fired.

The explosion sent the weapon flipping up in the air. In the middle of being congratulated, the weapon had resumed firing. The rocket had landed short, and only threw the weapon. He tried to get another LAW, but it was bent and unable to fire, so he loaded a 40mm grenade into his M203 Grenade Launcher (which was situated under the barrel of his M16). He fired and scored a direct hit, killing both gunmen and disabling the weapon. No one tried to go out and grab it, but Yurek would keep an eye on it.

“Well, you tell the general this:

I understand, but it is my duty to remind him that my men are surrounded by thousands of armed Somali militia. It is imperative that we move them out of the hostile area and into the safe zone. I need his help now.” – General William Garrison.

Lt. Col. Danny McKnight (leader of the ground convoy, in the first vehicle) and his driver were both wounded. The driver was blinded by shrapnel and McKnight had been wounded both in his arm and neck. Sgt. First Class Matt Rierson, angry at not knowing the situation, ran from his Humvee to McKnights to find out what they were doing. When he found out that they were trying to get to the crash site, he ran down to every vehicle and made sure every person knew where they were going.

Back in the convoy, Staff Sgt. John Burns and PFC. Adalberto Rodriguezwere hit. Pvt. Clay Othic, to make room for Burns, moved out of his Humvee toward one of the trucks, but with his broken arm, was unable to climb aboard. So he went to the cabin where Spec. Aaron Hand got out to let him in between Hand and the driver, PFC. Richard Kowalewski (a name no-one wanted to pronounce, so they nicknamed him “Alphabet”).

Near the back, Pvt. Ed Kallman was the driver of another Humvee. In it, were PFC. Tory Carlson, Sgt. Jim Telscher, Delta Master Sgt. Tim “Grizz” Martin, Sgt. Jeff McLaughlin and the injured PFC. Rodriguez. They were positioned so that Telscher, Martin and Rodriguez were crammed into the back. An RPG (widely-known as a Rocket Propelled Grenade) slammed into the Humvee, throwing all three out onto the ground. The blast blew the handguards off McLaughlin’s M16, pierced Carlson’s arm with Shrapnel and setting his boots on fire, hit an ammo drum (which was kicked out), tore a chunk out of Rodriguez’s thigh, and pretty much blew Martin in half.

Rodriguez, blown out of the moving Humvee, landed right in front of a Five-Ton Truck driven by Pvt. 2 John Maddox (who was disoriented by the blast), which drove right over him. Medics did what they could and put them in some Humvees with enough words.

Pvt. Ed Kallman’s vehicle had no wounded, surprisingly (though he was in the rear of the convoy). He had the windows rolled down to shoot out of, then he looked to his left and saw a trail of smoke. With an ear-shattering blast, the RPG hit the side of the jeep. Luckily, no-one was wounded by the combination of steel and bullet-proof glass.

Back on Hawlwadig Road (the very first road they started from) McKnight informed that they had taken way to many casualties. Eventually, he decided to head back to base. Even though, they were a long way from safety.

The vehicles had expended thousands and thousands of rounds of ammunition. They were full of bullet holes. One even had a busted axle and was being pushed by the Five-Ton Truck behind it.

In the same vehicle that Specialist Eric Spalding was in, Spec. James Cavaco was on the Mark-19 Automatic Grenade launcher, putting rounds through the windows of buildings. When he turned to shoot some Somali Gunmen in an alley, he slumped forward, dead, shot in the back of the head. Sgt. Paul Leonard got up on the gun and began firing. Not a minute after he began shooting, Sgt. Leonard was hit in the back of his leg (behind the kneecap). He was bandaged and they kept fighting.

In another vehicle, Pfc. Tory Carlson was firing his .50Cal machinegun when he was hit in the leg. Back in Spalding’s vehicle, he was next to the passenger side door firing out the window, when he looked down and saw what looked like a laser shoot through the door. Pvt. 2 John Maddox asked if he was hit, which the reply was yes. Another “laser” came in and hit Spalding’s other leg, but he kept firing. Maddox was hit in the back of the head, his helmet saved him, but the impact turned his helmet around and temporarily blinded him. Spalding, with his injured legs, couldn’t move to grab the steering wheel, so he just shouted orders at Maddox.

Maddox stopped the truck and Sgt. Mike Forman ran up and opened the drivers door. Maddox moved over and the Sgt. took the wheel.

In another Humvee, Pfc. Clay Othic was wedged in between the passenger Spec. Aaron Hand and Pfc. Richard Kowalewski, who was driving. Alphabet (Kowalewski’s nickname) was hit in the shoulder but kept steering. Then, there was an explosion. A rocket had impacted the drivers side door and slammed into Alphabet, lodging itself within his chest, but didn’t explode. The rocket must have hit something, probably a Flashbang Grenade, because the vehicle was full of smoke. The impact had killed Kowalewski instantly. Luckily, Othic and Hand only had their helmets blown off. The driverless humvee had slammed into the back of the vehicle in front (the one with prisoners and Spalding). As they climbed back into the humvee, Othic began searching the floor for rounds that were ejected when some of the guys’ weapons jammed, and started giving them back to the guys still shooting. They were almost out of ammo.

The convoy found a four-lane road that would lead them back to the K-4 Traffic Circle, which would then lead them home. Homer Nearpass, a SEAL, was the driver of the Humvee now in the lead. They saw a roadblock that was formed by two underground gasoline tanks and set on fire. Afraid of the Humvee giving out if they stopped, they just rammed the roadblock. The Humvee almost tipped over, but it kept going. The rest of the convoy followed.

Staff Sgt. Matt Eversmann was curled up in the back passenger seat of a Humvee, shooting out the window. He saw that every time they crossed an intersection, Somali’s on both sides would fire, and any stray rounds would certainly hit another Somali. Othic was still frantically trying to find spare ammo. The convoy approached the K-4 Traffic Circle and braced for another major ambush.

—————————————————————————————

Meanwhile, Staff Sgt. Jeff Struecker, lead of the three-vehicle convoy that took Blackburn back to base, was heading back out in another convoy composed of four Humvee and three Five-Ton Trucks. They were to head to Durants crash site. After trying to find ways of getting to Durant’s crash site, they ended up at the K-4 Traffic Circle.

The two convoy’s met up, and the guys in Struecker’s convoy were amazed at the damage that the convoy had taken. The almost-broken vehicles, all the wounded. The fresh vehicles made a perimeter around the first convoy and took the worst-off people and put them in the fresh vehicles.

—————————————————————————————

The men of the Lost Convoy thought there would be another ambush, but instead got the beautiful sight of Struecker’s convoy heading toward them. The lead Humvee of the Lost Convoy gave out. Sgt. “Grizz” Martin had been blown in half by a rocket, but was still alive. Sgt. Lorenzo Ruiz had a breathing tube in his chest.

They were safer, but still not out of the woods yet.

A Somali with an RPG shot. The rocket went under the Humvee which Sgt. Cash was in. The blast lifted the vehicle into the air, and it felt like they went off a ramp. The Humvee hit the ground, and the guys inside were unharmed. Specialist Dale Sizemore, also in the Humvee, had spotted a row of Somali’s. After the vehicle landed, Sizemore and the .50cal opened up. They shot there way back to base. Fired at everyone and everything that was in the streets. There were no Rules of Engagement anymore. Then, all of a sudden, blocks from the gate to the compound, all shooting stopped. The Somali’s there were carrying on business as usual. They parted ways for the convoy to get through.

The Somali’s turned to them, smiled, and applauded. They were finally safe.

However, there were still men out there, fighting for their lives against an entire city. Two downed Blackhawks, a force of men at the first crash site. They would be rescued. They had to be rescued. Durant had to be rescued. And it would happen in force.

Because No One Gets Left Behind.

Merry Christmas!

Merry (very late) Christmas and Happy (also late) New Years!
2008 was a pretty interesting year, and…unbelievably, it managed to top 2007 in terms of video-game-awesomeness. Everyone thought it couldn’t get better than it did in 2007, with Halo 3 and such. But the game industry just kept on going, coming out with all sorts of awesome things. Fallout 3, Resistance 2, Little Big Planet, Grand Theft Auto IV, Call of Duty 5, Mirror’s Edge, Gears of War 2, all great titles that made 2008 one of the best (game-wise) years. I wonder how 2009 will turn out…could it top 2008? It may do so. Either way, we’re in for one heck of a year with all the other stuff going on.

“The true way to mourn the dead is to take care of the living who belong to them.” – Edmund Burke

After having to leave Super Six-Four’s crash site due to intense fire and damage, Goffena was heading to base when the system warning sirens came on. Goffena was prepared to crash into a small alleyway when he found out that the controls were still functioning. He managed to pull the bird over the buildings and toward the main Docks; Friendly Territory.

Goffena then crash landed (quite smoothly) onto the docks and managed to stop before hitting some barrels at the end of the dock. Everyone was okay. Goffena and the rest of the crew then got out, and then he saw something coming down the road. Three Humvees; Strueckers Column, they were in luck.

Meanwhile, Pvt. Clay Othic (who was down in the first convoy, in the last Humvee) shot a chicken…in the midst of battle, as the convoy rounded the corner onto the street toward the Target House, as he fired, one of the rounds “turned a chicken into a puff of feathers” (BHD Online). Most of the men in the Convoy did not know that their orders had been changed (from take the prisoners and head back to base, to take the prisoners and go to Wolcotts crash site, then to Durants), and had no idea why they were not going back to base.

Othic was one of the first to be hit. Othic watched as an RPG was shot from a crowed and slammed into one of the Five-Ton Trucks, and blowing Staff Sgt. Dave Wilsons legs apart. Othic then went to turn his gun on a large crowed of armed Somalis, but was hit in the arm. After he was hit, he just started shooting into the crowed like crazy, until Sgt. Lorenzo Ruiz took over the gun. Others that were hit included Sgt. First Class Bob Gallagher and Sgt. Bill Powell.

The convoy wasn’t large enough to hold all the men (because of the three that left with Struecker), so a lot of guys had to walk. The convoy followed them, but then turned on a different route. This route pretty much just took them in an hour-long circle that ended up back at the Target house. They drove down the road and encountered Sgt. Matt Eversmann, who’s Chalk (4) had been pinned down since the battle started. He had about 5 men left who were actively able to fight. He got his men on the convoy, then he himself jumped onto it.

Specialist Eric Spalding (a friend of Othics) was in the second to last truck.

———————-Excerpt from book (online)——————-

As they crossed one alley, a woman in a flowing purple robe darted past on the driver’s side of the truck. The driver had his pistol resting on his left arm, and he was shooting at whatever moved.

Don’t shoot,” Spalding shouted at him. “She’s got a kid!”

At that moment the woman turned. Holding a baby on one arm, she raised a pistol with her free hand. Spalding shot her where she stood. He shot four more rounds into her before she fell. He hoped he hadn’t hit the baby. They were moving fast, and he didn’t get to see whether he had. He thought he probably had hit the baby. She had been carrying the infant on her arm, right in front. Why would a mother do something like that with a kid on her arm? What was she thinking?
———————————————————————————————–

The convoy was going through pure Hell. They were going nowhere fast. Dubbed “The Lost Convoy” by some, it was getting hit hard from every side. The amount of wounded were rising fast. At one point they went through an enormously fierce firestorm, made a U-Turn, and went right back through it. In Othics humvee, Sgt. Ruiz suddenly slumped down. Ruiz, like other men, took out the armored plates in his vest to fair better in the heat.

Since Ruizs’ body was still in the gun, Specialist Dave Ritchie got out and had to grab and fire the gun from the outside, until they pulled Ruiz into the vehicle. Ruiz seemed to be in shock. Another wounded. The convoy stopped again, and Rangers got out to fire. Specialist Aaron Hand, Sgt. Casey Joyce and Sgt. Eric Spalding were covering the convoy. Spalding was across the street from Hand, who wasn’t doing anything right (wasn’t seeking cover, left his back open) and Spalding debated whether or not to cross the street filled with gunfire.

While debating, SEAL John Gay ran across the street and got Spec. Hand back to the convoy. Joyce, however, was doing everything right. He had cover, he was kneeling and making his shots count. And as Spalding looked, a barrel came out of a window behind and above Joyce. A burst of fire, and the Sergeant hit the ground hard. Immediately, one of the .50 Cals on a Humvee tore holes in the window, and Spalding sprinted to Joyce and pulled him back to the convoy. Joyce looked dead. Spalding loaded him on the convoy, adding yet another person to the number of wounded.

“To look at them today, few show any outward sign that one day not too long ago they risked their lives in an ancient African city, killed for their country, took a bullet, or saw their best friend shot dead.

They returned to a country that didn’t care or remember. Their fight was neither triumph nor defeat; it just didn’t matter.” – Mark Bowden, Black Hawk Down (346)

Back at base, Staff Sgt. Jeff Struecker’s three-vehicle convoy had reached the base. The Hummers were shot up, Pilla was dead, and Blackburn looked like he was dying. After hearing everything that was happening, Specialist Dale Sizemore wanted to go into battle. He was upset that he couldn’t go on the mission because of his arm. He managed to hurt his arm while wrestling with a Colonel.

Among all the things that were happening, word now was that Struecker’s convoy was to be filled with fresh soldiers and sent out to Durant’s crash site. The commandos (SEALs, Delta) that had climbed off Strueckers convoy had already rearmed and were ready to go back into the city. However, the Rangers were shaken. Specialist Steve Anderson (who was a good friend of Sizemore, they both came from Illinois) had a total opposite feeling. Having a shrapnel wound from an earlier mission, he did not want to go back out there. Seeing Sgt. Pilla dead and Blackburn as bad as he was, Anderson just didn’t want to go. He thought “What are we doing here?”

Anderson looked at Specialist Brad Thomas. When Pilla was killed, he fell right into Thomas’ lap. He rode all the way back to base covered in Pilla’s blood. His eyes were red, he had been crying. Thomas just couldn’t take it anymore.

———————-Taken from the book (online)—————————-

The commander of Pilla’s tiny convoy, Staff Sgt. Jeff Struecker, felt his own heart sink. His vehicles were all shot up. His men were freaking out. One of the Delta guys pulled him aside.

“Look, sergeant, you need to clean your vehicle up,” he said, pointing to the blood-splattered Humvee. “If you don’t, your guys are going to get more messed up. It’s going to mess them up. They’re going to get sick.”

Struecker strode over to his Rangers.

“Listen, men. You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I’ll do it myself if I have to. But we have to clean this thing up right now because we’re fixing to roll right back out. Everybody else go resupply. Go get yourselves some more ammunition.”(Philadelphia Online)

——————————————————————————

Sizemore couldn’t take it anymore. He walked up to Sgt. Raleigh Cash (his team leader) and told him he was going with them. “You can’t, you’re hurt.” was the response. Sizemore didn’t bother to argue, his gear was packed for his Medivac flight home, so he grabbed some stray gear. He found a flak vest and Kevlar helmet, both a few sizes to big. He got his SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) and started putting ammo in any pocket he could, then ran back to Sgt. Cash. “You can’t go out there with that cast.” said Cash. So Sizemore found a pair of scissors and cut the cast right off and got on a Humvee. “Ok, fine.” said Cash.

Anderson saw all this, admired Sizemore even more and felt more ashamed of himself. He decided he would go back out.

Meanwhile, Thomas had lost it. He just couldn’t go back out. As others were getting into the vehicles, he pulled Struecker aside and told him “Sgt. Struecker, I can’t go back out there.” Struecker knew this was coming. He lead Thomas away to talk to him. Thomas restated “I can’t do it.” Thomas was calm. He had made a rational decision and had stuck to it.

“Listen,” Struecker said. “I understand how you feel. I’m married, too. Don’t think of yourself as a coward. I know you’re scared. I’m scared. . . . I’ve never been in a situation like this, either. But we’ve got to go. It’s our job. The difference between being a coward and a man is not whether you’re scared, it’s what you do while you’re scared.” Thomas didn’t seem to like the answer.

Struecker got back into a Humvee with everyone else. As they were about to roll back out, he looked into the side mirror and saw Thomas get into a Humvee.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween people! Go get some candies!

The Mercenaries 2 Update came out today, so I’ve been doing that.

Anyway, that’s it.

Have a good Halloween.

“Only the Dead have seen the end of War.” – Plato

As Super Six-Four completed it’s second or third pass (while varying it’s height and trying not to go over the same street twice, in the same area), CWO Mike Durant waited for news of his friend Cliff “Elvis” Wolcott.

From out of a building, a streak of smoke went into the sky. The rocket barely missed the Tail Rotor of Super Six-Four, but it heavily damaged it when it exploded (airburst). It didn’t seem like much, but to be safe they started heading back toward the base.

———–Excerpt from the Movie——————-

Col. Matthews: Super Six-Four, you all right?

Durant: This is Super Six-Four. We’re good.

Matthews: You sure? You look like you got clipped pretty good.

Durant: Instrument panels are okay. No, we’re good. Got a slight vibration in the pedals, but we’re good.

Matthews: All right, put her down on the airfield, Super Six-Four. Have it checked out just to be safe.

Durant: Roger. (To copilot) Ray, I’m getting a lot of movement in these pedals. Check the systems again.

(En route to the airfield, tail rotor assembly disintegrates.)

Durant: We lost the tail rotor, it’s gone. Six-four is going down! Six-four is going in hard! Six-four is going down! We’re going down! RAY!

*Super Six-Four rotates extremely fast before slamming into the ground, belly-first*

Seconds later…

Gen. Garrison: Get Struecker’s column back out there. They need to get to Durant’s crash site fast. I want ‘em out of there. All of them.

—————————————————–

Durant’s bird, after spinning wildly, slams into the ground a good mile or so away from the first crash site. It hit the ground with crushing force, but landed flat on the Blackhawks belly. The way the helicopter crashed meant that there could still be people alive. CWO Mike Goffena, pilot of Super Six-Two, was circling over Super Six-Four. Goffena could see Durant (and co-pilot CW4 Ray Frank) moving in the cockpit. Goffena could see the frustrated expression on Ray’s face (he had been in a similar crash during a training exercise).

All four crew members survived the impact, but only the pilots had shock absorbers in their seats.  Durant and Frank figured they both had crushed vertibrae.

In the air, Goffena had three Snipers inside trying to hold of Somalis. Two of which were Master Sergeant Gary Gordon and Sergeant First Class Randy Sugart. The two snipers tried over and over to get permission to be set down so they could hold off the Somali hordes until the rescue convoy could arrive. They eventually got it.

The two moved to the crash site and helped Durant to a nearby tree so he could give cover to the helicopter. Ray pulled himself out of the helicopter just as the two snipers arrived. That was the last time Durant saw him. The two Crew-Chiefs in the back (the ones without shock-absorbers) were in bad condition. Bill Cleveland was had blood all over his pants. He was talking, but not making any sense. The two snipers moved over to Tommy Field, the other Crew-Cheif, but Durant couldn’t see what they were doing.

———–Excerpt from the Movie———————

SFC. Shughart: (on radio) C-2, we’re at the 6-4 crash site. Securing a perimeter. (to Durant) You all right?

CWO Durant: Yeah, I’m good.

Shughart, (handing him a weapon): You’re locked and loaded. Any Skinnies come around these corners, you watch our backs. (He turns and starts outside.)

Durant: Hey – where’s the rescue squad?

Shughart: We’re it. (exits.)

—————————————————-

Unknown to anyone on the ground at the crash site, Star 4-1 (with Pilot Keith Jones and Co-Pilot Karl Maier), who landed at Super Six-One’s crash to extract the Crew-Cheifs managed to land about 110 yards away to try the same thing and extract more people. However, due to the condition of all the members of Super Six-Four, they could not be moved that far to the littlebird, and due to very low fuel and increasing fire, they had to head back to base.

Another thing that was wrong was the fact that there was only one CSAR (Combat Search And Rescue) helicopter, which had already been sent in to the first crash site. Nobody expected that two birds would be shot down.

For an endless amount of time, the snipers managed to hold off the crowed. They were running low on ammo.  They fought hard, but in the end were down to pistols. Not even fire from Goffena’s gunners and the few littlebirds nearby could hold off the mass of anger the Somali crowed had. Goffena took so much fire, he had to leave, and with him, the littlebirds. They were swarmed. The two Snipers, both Crew-Chiefs, Co-Pilot Ray Frank, all of them died there. Gary Gordon and Randy Sugart (snipers) were given the Medal Of Honor later. Only Durant was alive. When he saw a Somali come around the blackhawk and no other gunshots, he gave up. Put his gun on his lap, folded his arms and looked up to the sky. He was ready to die.

And if it wasn’t for Yousuf Dahir Mo’Alim (leader of the neighborhood militia) and his men, Durant would’ve. Yousuf realised that Durant was more valuable alive than dead, and so he had his men make a parameter around him to keep the crowed at bay. They stripped him down to his pants and brown t-shirt, blindfolded him and took him away. He didn’t know where they were taking him, they were half dragging and half carrying him. Durant was being punched and kicked. He felt his broken Femur pierce through his skin.

He passed out.

“You did what we were trained to do. You should be proud of that. Be proud of that.” – Sgt. Eversmann to Cpl. Jamie Smith

Abdiaziz Ali Aden, a civilian during the operation, saw the Militiamen (carrying an RPG) run out into an alley, drop to one knee, and fire.

Chalk Twos M-60 Gunner Shawn Nelson saw the RPG streak through the air. It slammed into the back of Super Six One’s tail rotor.

“Oh, my God, you guys. Look at this!”

The bird started to spin, slowly at first, then picking up speed. It flew directly over Chalk Two and Aden, spinning fast, hitting the corner of a house, then flipping and slamming into the ground, sliding into a wall.

—–Excerpt from the Movie————————————-

CWO Wolcott: This is Super Six One, I’m hit. I’m hit. Bull, you wanna pull those PCL’s off-line, or what?

CWO “Bull” Briley: Right, babe.

A few seconds later…

CWO Wolcott: Six-one going down, Six-one going down. Hold on! Ah… (he breaks off on impact with the ground)

Col. Harrell: We got a Black Hawk down. We got a Black Hawk down.

Col. Matthews: Super 6-1 is down. We got a bird down in the city.

Unidentified Voice: Super 6-1 is on the deck now.

Gen. Garrison: Get an MH-6 on site, check for survivors. Send in the S.A.R. bird. I want ground forces to move and secure a new perimeter around that crash site. Can you guide the convoy in there?

Matthews: Roger that.

Garrison: Well, move quick. The whole damn city will be coming down on top of them. (Off radio, to executive officer) We just lost the initiative.

—————————————————————-

A Little Bird (Callsign Star-41) was called to land near the crash site and extract as many survivors as possible. Super Six Eight CSAR (Combat Search And Rescue) hovered near the crash site and dropped off the Search And Rescue team, taking an RPG Hit to the main rotor blades, and taking out a chunk of them. Super Six Eight then flew back to base, unknowingly, they lost all 7 gallons of oil, all 7 quartz for each engine, and their transmission and engine cooler had been destroyed. They landed just as the helicopter gave out, and rushed to the “spare” chopper, and got back in the air.

Star-41, meanwhile, had landed in a small alleyway, barely large enough to fit the Little Bird. Pilot CWO Keith Jones and Co-Pilot Karl Maier fired handguns down the alley, when Sgt. Jim Smith (a sniper) appeared near them. He had dragged Staff Sgt. Daniel Busch from the crash site to a nearby wall, and needed help getting him out. Maier helped keep the alley clear while Jones went to help Smith.

Just then, Lt. DiTomasso (Chalk Leader of Chalk Two, along with 8 other men) rounded the corner, and were almost shot by Maier. Busch (nicknamed Rambusch for being gung-ho) was almost dead, and taken to the little bird by Jones and Smith. Busch was set in the small back door, and Smith was helped in by Jones.

Jones got back into the pilot seat just as the Command Bird came in.

“Forty-One, come out. Come out now.”

Deciding that they needed to leave immediately, with climbing risk of being damaged, along with Smith and Busch needing doctors, they had to leave and hope that the Rangers could hold out a little longer for help.

“Roger, Forty-One coming out now.”

During this, CW3 Mike Durant and Co-Pilot CW4 Ray Frank (pilots of Super Six Four) were given the order to take Super Six Ones place for Arial cover.

“You wanna know what I think? It don’t really matter what I think. Once that first bullet goes past your head, politics and all that sh-t, just goes right out the window.” – Hoot

“Make no mistake: once you’re in Bakara Market you’re in an entirely hostile district. Don’t underestimate their capabilities. We’ll be going through friendly districts before hitting the market, so remember the rules of engagement: nobody fires unless fired upon. Now, Let’s go get this thing done. Good luck, gentlemen.”

“Good luck, boys! Be careful. No one gets left behind.” – Gen. William Garrison

October 3, 1993, Mogadishu Somalia, around noon.

Missions have been scrubbed often enough during the operation. It seemed like it would probably be scrubbed too. It was noon, not night. Their NODs (Night Vision Goggles) would not be any kind of advantage. It was in the middle of one of the most hostile districts in the city – The Bakara Market. The mission seemed simple enough: Drop in from birds, take some prisoners, then exfil on the ground convoy.

On the choppers, waiting for the mission to be scrapped, was a mix of Task Force Ranger and Delta Force. TFR on the Blackhawks to provide cover in the streets, and Delta on the Little Birds to raid the building. The rangers were split into four “Chalks”, which are (usually) Platoon-size units designed for one task. In the Rangers case, it was to provide a “square” of protection around the target building while Delta Force raided the building.

The Ground Convoy, with three of the M35 trucks and the rest Humvees, had elements of all the forces involved, TFR, Delta, SEALs, etc…

They had an Operative (Somali) that was suppose to go to the building Mohamed Hassan Awale was inside of (Aidids top political advisor). Hesitant, he eventually drove to the building (after putting a big X made of duct-tape on his roof, to identify himself to the birds overhead), got out and popped the truck (which then started pouring smoke) to signal it was the right building.

The helicopters had already spun up before they got the word. “Irene.” The code word that the mission was a-go.

“Irene! Haha, f***in’ Irene!”

With that, the force lifted off and began toward the city, going out to sea first. At the same time, the ground convoy took off toward the city. As the force entered the city, an “early warning” spotter called in to Aidids men.

In front of the main force, two AH-6 Little Birds armed with mini-guns and rockets rolled in. They elevated, then dropped and flew low and fast with their weapons pointed at the ground. They lifted out without firing a shot. Then the force hit hard and fast, the Blackhawks fast-roped in the Ranger Chalks, the Little Birds dropped Delta Force. The convoy rolled up behind the Olympic Hotel (about a block away from the Target Building).

However, by some “bad luck” (the movie showed it as the helicopter dodging an RPG-7), Pvt. Todd Blackburn “missed” the rope and fell a good 70 feet to the ground, being heavily injured in the process. Their first injury, Eversmann (the new Chalk Leader) sent out a squad of Rangers to hook up with the Convoy at the Target Building to get Blackburn back to base.

At this time, Delta had secured everyone inside the building and the Convoy moved out from the Hotel. The shooting had started, and the convoy shot back. After a while of getting everyone ready to leave, the fire had intensified.

“How long until we’re ready to leave!?”

“About five minutes!”

“Nothing takes five minutes!”

———————————————————

During this time, the convoy of 3 Humvees carrying the injured Blackburn headed pack to base under heavy fire. It was during this time that Sgt. Dominic Pilla, who was manning the squad M249 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon, a light machine gun), saw a Somali shooting on the side of the road. The Somali saw him. Both shot at the same time, and killed each other. The loss of the Sgt.  was the first loss since this began.

Thomas: Sergeant Pilla’s hit! Christ, he’s f—ed up!
McKnight: Is anybody hit? Struecker, talk to me!
Struecker: It’s Sergeant Pilla!
McKnight: What’s his status?… What’s his status!?

“Hoot”: He’s dead!
…

Struecker: He’s dead. Pilla’s dead, sir.
McKnight: C2, this is McKnight, we have a KIA: Dominick Pilla, over.
Harell: Roger that.

Struecker reported that as soon as he said “He’s dead”, that all the radio chatter (of at least 25+ conversations) stopped instantly. They managed to fight their way out of the city and get back to base.

Then they heard of what happened just before they got back to base.

———————————————————

The Somalis didn’t care if they got hit, but they knew that the Americans would never leave without all their men. And they had a plan to bog them down in the city, one they were planning for quite some time. Switching out some Impact-Detonation RPG Warheads for Airburst warheads, they thought if they could down a helicopter, that the Americans would have to go save them. And when they did, they (the Somalis) would have already set up Roadblocks to prevent the convoy from reaching the area. And RPG teams were already moving into position.

Just then, Super Six One, piloted by CW4 Cliff Wolcott and Co-pilot CW3 “Bull” Briley passed overhead.

“Sergeant, you can’t control who gets hit or who doesn’t. Who falls out of a chopper, or why. It ain’t up to you. It’s just war.”

“When I get home and people ask me,’Hey, Hoot, why do you do it, man? What are you? Some kind of war junkie? I won’t say a goddamn word. Why? They won’t understand. They won’t understand why we do it. They won’t understand that it’s about the men next to you. And that’s it. That’s all it is.”

Lets backtrack a little. A year or two earlier, the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit landed in Mogadishu to provide aid (food, medical, etc) to the civilian population. There were around 2,000 marines in all, along with elements from the 10th Mountain Division and 3rd Assault Amphibious Battalion. Eventually, the marines were pulled out of the country, leaving the Pakistani units to provide relief.

Peace talks were in the works with Aidid, but on June 5, 1993, twenty-four Pakistani troops were killed in territory held by Aidid. In response, Task Force Ranger and Delta Force were sent in to capture or kill Aidid.

There was a meeting of clan elders, from just about all the clans in the area, meeting in a building to discuss how to deal with Aidid, and whom were supporters of the U.S. In a deadly mistake, thinking that it was a safehouse for Habar Gidir, Aidids clan, gunships (either AH-1 Cobras or AH-1W SuperCobras) hit the building with around 16 TOW missiles and thousands of rounds of 20mm cannon fire. The act killed 73 people inside the building, and pretty much unified the clans against the U.S. and Pakistani (U.N.) forces.

We would lose five blackhawks before this was over. Two of which, were caught directly in the path of RPGs, and both exploded during a night flight. The bodies were recovered, all internal systems were destroyed.

The fate of the other three would be, more or less, the same. Thus, the story of Black Hawk Down begins…

[To Be Continued...]