Operation Red Wing

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For the 1956 series of US nuclear tests, see Operation Redwing.
Operation Red Wing
Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
Date June 28, 2005
Location Kunar province, Afghanistan
Result Taliban victory; operational failure.
Belligerents
 United States Flag of Afghanistan Taliban insurgents
Commanders
Lt. Cmdr. Erik S. Kristensen †[1]
1 Lt. Michael P. Murphy  †		 Ahmad Shah
Strength
12 Navy SEALs, 2 MH-47 Chinook, 2 UH-60 Black Hawk and 2 AH-64D Apache helicopters 150-200
Casualties and losses
19 killed, 1 wounded,
1 Chinook helicopter shot down[2]		 Unknown, upwards of 100
Mazar-I-Sharif – Herat – Qala-i-Jangi – Tora Bora – Anaconda – Takur Ghar – Jacana – Red Wing – Lashkagar – Mountain Thrust – Helmand – Kaika – Sangin – Panjwaii – Medusa – Mountain Fury – Falcon Summit – Achilles – Hoover – Chora – Firebase Anaconda – Harekate Yolo – Musa Qala – Karez – Gora Prai – Sarposa Prison – Arghandab – Wanat – Hammer – Uzbin – Eagle's Summit

Operation Red Wing was a failed counter insurgent mission in Kunar province, Afghanistan, involving four members of the U.S. Navy SEALs, which took place June 28, 2005. Three of the SEALs were killed during the operation. The fourth was protected by local villagers and later rescued by the U.S. military. The story of the rescued SEAL would later become an a TIME Magazine article, titled "How The Shepherd Saved The SEAL."[3]

Contents

Operation Red Wing

The SEAL team, led by Lt. Michael P. Murphy and consisting of petty officers Matthew Axelson, Danny Dietz and Marcus Luttrell, was on a mission to kill or capture Ahmad Shah (nom de guerre Mohammad Ismail), a key Taliban leader, west of Asadabad,[4] who ultimately died in a firefight some two years later.[5] After an initially successful infiltration, local goat herders stumbled upon the SEALs' hiding place. The SEALs decided to let them go rather than kill them, and the herders alerted local Taliban forces. They were surrounded by the Taliban and a firefight ensued. [6]

Even though they were pinned down, Lt. Murphy broke cover long enough to make a call to his base for back-up. The call was placed on a cell phone, due to the fact that the radio reception was very bad on that part of the mountain, and the base could not receive their radio transmission. In the process of placing this call, he was shot in the stomach and back but he still managed to complete the call.[6] The three remaining SEALs continued to fight off the Taliban, gravely wounded, protecting each other as their position was pushed back to lower ground. After two hours of fighting and killing dozens of Taliban fighters each, only Luttrell remained alive.[7]

In response to the call from Murphy to Bagram Air Base, two MH-47 Chinook helicopter's, four UH-60 Blackhawks and two AH-64D Longbows attempted to come to their rescue to provide extraction in the mountains of Kunar province, Afghanistan. Crew from the escort attack helicopters praised the SEALs on the ground as putting up outstanding resistance, calling it "an unbelievable firefight." One of the Chinook helicopter's carrying eight US Navy SEALs and eight Nightstalkers - members of the Army's elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment was shot down by what is believed to have been a rocket propelled grenade shot through the open rear ramp killing all sixteen on board.

Rescue

Main article: Marcus Luttrell#Operation Red Wing

Now alone and wounded, Luttrell had to fend for himself. He pulled himself away from the fire zone and tried to hide himself as he waited for rescue from the search helicopters flying overhead. During this time, Luttrell was discovered by an Afghan man who was not part of the Taliban. Shortly afterwards, more Afghan men showed up armed with AK-47 rifles. The men took the wounded Luttrell and carried him to the village of Sabray-Minah.[7] The villagers in Sabray-Minah took care of Luttrell, providing food and medical attention, and even protecting him from the Taliban that came to the village demanding that he be turned over to them.

Despite multiple attempts, the search helicopters were unable to locate Luttrell. Finally, the village elder, armed with a note from Luttrell, went down to seek help from a Marine outpost several miles away. With this information, the U.S. forces drew up rescue plans. According to Lt. Col. Steve Butow, the plans were "one of the largest combat search-and-rescue operations since Vietnam".[7] As the rescue teams closed in upon the village, Luttrell aided by some of the villagers was moving from one hiding place to another and came across one of the rescue teams. He was taken from the villagers at this point and his escape completed.

Casualties

SEALs from left to right, Matthew G. Axelson; Daniel R. Healy, James Suh, Marcus Luttrell, Shane E. Patton, and Lt. Michael P. Murphy. With the exception of Luttrell, all were killed June 28, 2005, by enemy forces while supporting Operation Red Wing.

SEAL Team:

The service members killed-in-action on the crashed helicopter include:[8]

Nightstalkers:

  • Staff Sgt. Shamus O. Goare, 29, of Danville, Ohio
  • Chief Warrant Officer Corey J. Goodnature, 35, of Clarks Grove, Minnesota.
  • Sgt. Kip A. Jacoby, 21, of Pompano Beach, Florida
  • Sgt. 1st Class Marcus V. Muralles, 33, of Shelbyville, Indiana
  • Master Sgt. James W. Ponder III, 36, of Franklin, Tennessee
  • Maj. Stephen C. Reich, 34, of Washington Depot, Connecticut.
  • Sgt. 1st Class Michael L. Russell, 31, of Stafford, Virginia
  • Chief Warrant Officer Chris J. Scherkenbach, 40, of Jacksonville, Florida

SEALs:

  • FCC(SEAL/SW) Jacques J. Fontan, 36, of New Orleans, Louisiana
  • ITCS(SEAL) Daniel R. Healy, 36, of Exeter, New Hampshire
  • Lt. Cmdr. Erik S. Kristensen, 33, of San Diego, California
  • ET1(SEAL) Jeffery A. Lucas, 33, of Corbett, Oregon
  • Lt. Michael M. McGreevy, Jr., 30, of Portville, New York
  • QM2(SEAL) James E. Suh, 28, of Deerfield Beach, Florida
  • HM1(SEAL/FMF) Jeffrey S. Taylor, 30, of Midway, West Virginia
  • MM2(SEAL) Shane E. Patton, 22, of Boulder City, Nevada

Awards

 This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (July 2008)

On September 14, 2006, Dietz and Axelson were posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for "undaunted courage" and heroism. Luttrell was also awarded the Navy Cross in a ceremony at the White House. In 2007, Lieutenant Murphy was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the battle. Additionally, June 28, 2008, Luttrell and the family members of those killed were honored at the San Diego Padres game. In addition, the Navy Leapfrogs brought in the American flag, the POW/MIA flag, the San Diego Padres flag. Lutrell and the family members were given a standing ovation by the more than 25,000 there to watch the game.

Memorials

A statue commemorating the operation stands in the Cupertino Memorial Park, in Cupertino, California. Matthew Axelson was a former resident of Cupertino, and a member of the team involved in Operation Red Wing.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^ Lone Survivor, pp 247-248
  2. ^ CNN.com - Helicopter crash victims identified - Jul 3, 2005
  3. ^ How The Shepherd Saved The SEAL. July 18, 2005. [1]
  4. ^ Naylor, Sean D. (2007-06-18). "Surviving SEAL tells story of deadly mission". Army Times. Retrieved on 2008-07-21.
  5. ^ Dupee, Matt (2007-04-17). "Bara bin Malek Front commander killed in Pakistani shootout". The Long War Journal. Retrieved on 2008-07-21.
  6. ^ a b Highest Honor for Afghan War Hero
  7. ^ a b c Blumenfeld, Laura (2007-06-11). "The Sole Survivor - A Navy Seal, Injured and Alone, Was Saved By Afghans' Embrace and Comrades' Valor". Washington Post.
  8. ^ CNN.com - Helicopter crash victims identified - Jul 3, 2005

External links

Notes

War on Terrorism
Timeline · Casualties · Theaters · Criticism
Participants
Operational
Conflicts
Other
Terrorist
attacks
2001–2002
2003–2004
2005–2006
2007–2008
See also
Terrorism · War

Video shot by the Taliban of the firefight and aftermath can be seen at http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=69fe9ab458

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Red_Wing"

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