Then the realization hit: He was now in charge. military operation during the War in Afghanistan. 2023 Getty Images. The two Apaches had arrived on station, drawing heavy gunfire, but nonetheless giving Turbine 34s crew back in the operations center a good look at the crash site. Approaching the insertion point, the pilots flared the Chinook and came into a hover. Turbine 34 started taking heavy gunfire from unseen fighters below. Robert Thaler, courtesy of DVIDS. Theyve got their own quick reaction force. They shared a laugh as they loaded up for the flight back to Bagram. Coffee or Die Magazine | Operation Red Wings Through the Eyes of the Night Stalkers Features Operation Red Wings Through the Eyes of the Night Stalkers July 26, 2020 Joshua Skovlund The memorial service display in Bagram, Afghanistan. To cope with the catastrophic loss, she long ago befriended other moms who lost children inside the Pentagon on 9/11 and in Operation Red Wings, and a few years ago began volunteering to be an "Arlington Lady," a liaison to families of the fallen during Navy funerals at Arlington National Cemetery near their home on Capitol Hill. Matt Bradys MH-47 Chinook helicopter on Bagram Air Base. ", "But he wasn't a non-conformist just to be a non-conformist," Ismay explained. The flight crew kicked out the ropes, and the SEALs fast-roped down. The Navy's summary of action of Operation Red Wings states that an MH-47 Chinook helicopter, with eight additional SEALs and eight Army Night Stalkers aboard, was dispatched as part of an extraction mission to pull out the four embattled SEALs. A California Marine remains in the brig, accused of threatening to chop up his wife with a machete. The C-17 closed its ramp and taxied down the runway and took flight. When you hear all four directions, everyone gets pretty tense, Brady said. I could see a lot of vehicles with troops armed to the damn teeth, Smith recalled. Brady said he estimated the AC-130 would only be off station briefly and that the crew had reported no hostile activity on the LZ. Pastors from the task force lead the caskets onto the C-17. Theyve got their own quick-reaction force. In January 2003, Brooks quit college and within a few months, he joined the Army. Tim Graham standing by in Bagram. He and Eicher hurried back to the operations center. As the pilots climbed the last 1,000 feet of elevation, the AC-130 crew providing overwatch on their destination radioed to say they had to leave their position due to a mechanical issue. They then used explosives to clear out a large enough area for Chinooks to land when they came back. Im glad youre a thinking air mission commander and not simply one that takes a black-and-white view of the situation.. As the storm raged, the members of the task force haunted with thoughts of their brothers on the mountain tried to sleep. They ascended and flew back to Jalalabad to link up with another group of SEALs and stand by as a quick-reaction force (QRF) in case the SR team was compromised. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. Kristensen agreed with Bradys evaluation, and after the SR team radioed that they would be laying down for the day in their hide site, Brady and Kristensen called it a night. Operation Redwing was a United States series of 17 nuclear test detonations from May to July 1956. Nope, I want you to take my spot as the operations officer and monitor from here, Reich replied. When you hear all four directions, everyone gets pretty tense, Brady said. Kristensen and his SEALs were waiting on the ramp, standing in a circle. Then the helos blades started hitting each other, and the aircraft rolled to the right before inverting as it descended to the mountainous terrain below. As I stared into the maze of pines, my heart rate increased, the sweat still pouring down my browine. On battlefields throughout history, the combat engineer has proven time and again to be a decisive factor in victory and defeat. With that, they retired to their rooms to rest for phase two of the operation the following night. of 1 As the Night Stalkers flew back to Bagram, the JSOC ground force that had convoyed to the crash radioed to the task force that they had secured the site. The 160th SOAR (A) Night stalkers are the only unit in the world to operate this helicopter (Photo: U.S. Army) A source from the Navy's special operations community described the reaction as "Shock and disbelief. Not wanting to leave their brothers, the SEAL team commander hatched a plan with the Night Stalkers to insert higher up on the ridgeline and fight their way down to the crash site so Turbine 34 could fly back to Jalalabad, pick up as many SEALs as he could, and fly back to reinforce the eight SEALs. Lt. Steven K. Young, courtesy of DVIDS. Not really sure who they were, but there was more activity than I expected.. There were 100-foot-tall trees on all sides of the Chinook, and they were so close the pilots had no room to sway as they descended. Shroades (medic R/160), SGT Dan Bell (E Co/160) during during the timeframe of Operation Red Wings. The fallen Night Stalkers of the 160th SOAR included: Chief Warrant Officer Corey J. Goodnature, Chief Warrant Officer Chris J. Scherkenbach. Throughout the mission, as his unit patrolled along exposed mountainsides and ravines, Brooks described the feeling that he and his unit could be ambushed at any moment. Follow @CoffeeOrDieMag on Twitter. Ten years doesn't make any difference.". Brady said he pleaded with Reich to at least let him come with and act as an extra gun and set of eyes. The commander explained that the ground force commander had already rejected that plan and didnt want to wait any longer. Franais : L'Opration Red Wings est une opration de contre-insurrection mene par l'arme amricaine le 28 juin 2005 contre les talibans de la province de Kounar. A new book released Tuesday tells the story of the efforts U.S. Army Rangers made in summer 2005 to recover the casualties of Operation Red Wings and to rescue the missions lone survivor, U.S. Navy SEAL Petty Officer Marcus Luttrell. Back in the operations center, leaders were busy trying to figure out the SEALs last known location and calculating how many soldiers each helicopter could fly with. Once on the ground, theyd have to pick up the rope, hook it to themselves, and get hoisted back up. The members of the task force said their final goodbyes. Assigned to replace Eicher as senior flight lead, he was trying to learn as much as he could before hopping into an aircraft and joining the mission. Navy SEALs Conduct an Impressive Capabilities Exercise Here's Rangers vs. Photo by Spc. Photo by Mark C. Olsen, courtesy of DVIDS. The members of the task force said their final goodbyes. Were completely separate commands. ", 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. The note said that Marcus Luttrell was alive at a nearby village. Were completely separate commands. "Next year, I'm giving him up," Sam Kristensen said, half joking, of future tributes for her son. One of the SEALs even drew his pistol and attempted unsuccessfully to force the Chinook to land so they could try to save their friends. The sun was fading behind Afghanistans Hindu Kush mountains the evening of June 27, 2005, as a team of four U.S. Navy SEALs walked up the ramp and into the back of U.S. Army Captain Matt Bradys MH-47 Chinook helicopter on Bagram Air Base. "Because he entered the teams a little later than his peers, he was a strong and humble leader. When I met him there on the ground in Jalalabad, Graham was fairly shaken to say the least, Brady recalled. Kristensen was the one who organized a rescue mission after a SEAL reconnaissance team's leader, Lt. Michael Murphy, called for help well into a firefight in Kunar province's soaring mountains. Many of the men suffered scorched hands from gripping the rope through gloves for such a long descent. Kristensen's example of leadership and valor has become legend among the midshipmen of the Naval Academy. Some of the Night Stalkers hanging out in the B huts they slept in, enjoying much needed down time. Chris, Turbine 33 has just been shot down, he told Eicher, whod earned the nickname Iceman for his always cool demeanor. All of us were pretty broken up at that point, Rogie said. The remaining Night Stalkers prepared for a rescue operation. When Turbine 33 was shot down, they received orders to fly back along with Turbine 34 and the Apache gunships until the next phase of the mission was developed. The Armys elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR) is known for having some of the most skilled aviators in the world, who fly the most elite special operators into some of the most austere environments on earth using the most advanced aircraft in the U.S. military inventory. Photo courtesy of Matt Rogie. During the flight, the Night Stalkers passed two Apache gunships whose pilots asked if they wanted to slow down so they could provide surveillance and support for the operation. Based on the non-fiction book by Marcus Luttrell with Patrick Robinson, the acclaimed, 2013 American biographical military action movie Lone Survivor dramatizes the US Navy SEALs counter-insurgent mission Operation Red Wings which took place on Jun. The Night Stalkers job was to insert the SEALs on a ridgeline where the terrain left few options for landing zones. The order was given to again abort the mission and return to base. Brady said he estimated the AC-130 would only be off station briefly and that the crew had reported no hostile activity on the LZ. Good, Brady recalled Reich saying. We argued for what seemed like 10 minutes but was actually about 30 seconds, Brady recalled. Kristensen once told Roth, "I don't know about this whole SEAL thing. Graham watched from Turbine 34 as Turbine 33s ramp lowered and the crewman walked onto it to observe the landing zone below. They then used explosives to clear out a large enough area for Chinooks to land when they came back. A dog tag with the "Warrior Ethos" inscribed on it, discovered in the wreckage of a shot down MH-47 helicopter in Operation Red Wings on June 28, 2005. Navy SEAL Lt. Children of varying ages ran around the coffins, playing and yelling, not yet old enough to understand the sacrifices these warriors made. "He was a very a selfless guy.". Russell went to work right away getting the crews together to prep the aircraft for the mission. The extreme height of the trees made the full length of rope approximately 90 feet necessary. The 160th had only lost helicopters during daylight missions at that point theyre calledNight Stalkers for a reason. military operation. I could see a lot of vehicles with troops armed to the damn teeth, Smith recalled. Search for jobs related to Operation red wings crash site photos or hire on the world's largest freelancing marketplace with 21m+ jobs. Photo provided by Brooks. The MH-47 was escorted by heavily-armored, Army attack helicopters. That's how I remember him.". The pilots descended to the point where the Chinooks front rotor was just a few feet away from the mountainside with tall trees all around the aircraft. Their war-weary faces were chiseled stone as they watched the task force solemnly load 16 flag-draped internment cases into the C-17. The birds call sign was Turbine 33. Brooks said he reached out to Luttrell for his inputs about how to handle the story, but that Luttrell declined to discuss the events of that day. He asked Graham to repeat, unable to register what he had just heard. . That weather out there is unbelievable. Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. Hovering for that long over the same spot would burn the LZ and likely alert the enemy to the SR teams presence.. From left, SGT Carlos Pacheco (3/160 medic, former 3/75), SFC Marcus V. Muralles (Legend 3/160 medic), MAJ Sam Sauer (3/160 flight surgeon), SFC L.E. The odds of enemy fighters hearing the echo of the dual-rotor helicopter increased every second it remained in a hover. Arriving at the insertion point on the ridgeline, Turbine 33 descended into a hover. The pilots descended to the point where the Chinooks front rotor was just a few feet away from the mountainside with tall trees all around the aircraft. #OperationRedWings pic.twitter.com/FWsObBsX6n Boot Campaign (@BootCampaign) June 28, 2019 The four SEALs on the ground had continued the fight, killing an estimated 35 militants, until Murphy, Axelon and Dietz were killed, leaving Luttrell gravely wounded and laying in a ravine after a grenade blast knocked him unconscious. There were no survivors. The commandos would have to descend from a rope fast-rope while the helos hovered high above the trees. Chief Warrant Officer 4 Matt Rogie arrived in Bagram just before the Night Stalkers came back after dropping off the recovery force. Born and raised in small-town South Dakota, he grew up playing football and soccer before serving as a forward observer in the US Army. Many of the men suffered scorched hands from gripping the rope through gloves for such a long descent. The rescue operation, known as Operation Red Wings II, continued for weeks. Receiving the transmission, Brady couldnt believe it. That's who Erik really was," said Jason Redman, who served in SEAL Team 10 as an officer with Kristensen at the time of the Operation Red Wings disaster and had once been in Murphy's platoon. The task force commander debriefed the men and then focused on planning their next steps. Weve got two military-aged males, possibly armed, on the northernmost LZ, the crew reported. Not really sure who they were, but there was more activity than I expected.. In one passage, he wrote, At any moment, I expected the crack of a rifle. Graham reported the situation back to Bagram. The birds call sign was Turbine 33. Hes a person all those Jesuits wanted us to be, said Ismay, a fellow Gonzaga graduate. The C-17 sat on the runway with the ramp down, waiting to receive the 16 interment cases containing the fallen warriors. This was a desolate part of the Hindu Kush, and at night, you wouldnt really expect to see much, Brady told Coffee or Die Magazine.