2022
01.08

extortion 17 crash photos

extortion 17 crash photos

On 6 August 2011, a U.S. CH-47D Chinook military helicopter operating with the call sign Extortion 17 (pronounced "one-seven") was shot down while transporting a Quick Reaction Force attempting to reinforce a Joint Special Operations Command unit of the 75th Ranger Regiment in the Tangi Valley in Maidan Wardak province, southwest of Kabul, American forces continued to carry out operations in the area (mostly via helicopter and using special forces), encountering resistance from Taliban fighters on several occasions. The crash killed all 38 people on board including 25 American special operations personnel, five United States Army National Guard and Army Reserve crewmen, seven Afghan commandos, and one Afghan interpreter as well as a U.S. military working dog. The 30 Navy SEALs and other Special Forces personnel, along with the Helicopter flight crew because American Military and Political leaders threw these men under the bus the enemy was driving and then covered it all up with lies and deceit. The basis of the provocative hit military documentary Fallen Angel Call Sign: Extortion 17. The circumstances surrounding the events of Extortion 17 are tragic. The Final Mission of Extortion 17: Special Ops, Helicopter Support, SEAL Team Six, and the Deadliest Day of the U.S. War in Afghanistan Hardcover - September 19, 2017 by Ed Darack (Author) 223 ratings Editors' pick Best History See all formats and editions Kindle $13.99 Read with Our Free App Audiobook $0.00 Free with your Audible trial Hardcover Yesterday, the Pentagon released the names of the 30 troops-- Navy SEALs, soldiers, and airmen, killed in the helicopter downed by Taliban fighters in eastern Afghanistan last weekend. No one is planting victory gardens, and were not rationing. The forward rotor system then tore off, stressed by the imbalance and the strain of carrying what would normally be a shared load. [11][12], As the Rangers approached the target compound, ISR aircraft observed several people leaving the compound. When the shock subsided, questions arose and persisted. She had just given birth to their first child. [11] Going forward, the two AH-64 Apache helicopters would be engaged in tracking those two groups of Taliban, and hence unable to provide surveillance or fire support to the inbound helicopter carrying the SEAL team. A senior Afghan government official, speaking anonymously, said that Taliban commander Qari Tahir had fed American forces false information about a meeting of insurgent leaders and fighters waited for the helicopter from both sides of a steep valley: "The Taliban knew which route the helicopter would take. The incident became known as "Extortion 17" after the helicopter . The following was transcribed from the above video press conference. Lieutenant Commander (SEAL) Jonas B. Kelsall, 32, of Shreveport, Louisiana, Special Warfare Operator Master Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Louis J. Langlais, 44, of Santa Barbara, California, Special Warfare Operator Senior Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Thomas A. Ratzlaff, 34, of Green Forest, Arkansas, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician Senior Chief Petty Officer (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist) Kraig M. Vickers 36, of Kokomo, Hawaii, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Brian R. Bill, 31, of Stamford, Connecticut, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) John W. Faas, 31, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Kevin A. Houston, 35, of West Hyannisport, Massachusetts, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Matthew D. Mason, 37, of Kansas City, Missouri, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Stephen M. Mills, 35, of Fort Worth, Texas, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician Chief Petty Officer(Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist/Diver) Nicholas H. Null, 30, of Washington, West Virginia, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Robert J. Reeves, 32, of Shreveport, Louisiana, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Heath M. Robinson, 34, of Detroit, Michigan, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL) Darrik C. Benson, 28, of Angwin, California, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL/Parachutist) Christopher G. Campbell, 36, of Jacksonville, North Carolina, Information Systems Technician Petty Officer 1st Class (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist) Jared W. Day, 28, of Taylorsville, Utah, Master-at-Arms Petty Officer 1st Class (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist) John Douangdara, 26, of South Sioux City, Nebraska, Cryptologist Technician(Collection)Petty Officer 1st Class(Expeditionary Warfare Specialist) Michael J. In March 2009, the U.S. 10th Mountain Division established a base in Tangi Valley after increased Taliban activity in the area. As is routine on such missions, two Apache attack helicopters provided extra cover and security for Extortion 17, while circling above was an AC-130 aircraft, a gunship that also provides surveillance. Classified reports, published by Wikileaks, teem with notes from pilots and crew of all types of military helicopters who saw RPG attacks throughout the war. [11], The 30 American deaths represent the greatest loss of U.S. military lives in a single incident in the war in Afghanistan that began in 2001. The Final Flight of Extortion 17 It was the deadliest helicopter crash in the history of U.S. special operations. When the two Chinooks had first touched down in the village, a group of eight fighters armed with AK-47 rifles and RPG-7 rocket-propelled grenade launchers bolted from the compound. With 38 people killed on board, it was the largest single-day loss of life in naval special warfare history and the largest single-day loss of life during the war in Afghanistan. Just three months earlier, members of a counterpart SEAL Team 6 squadron successfully raided a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and killed Osama bin Laden. Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. In fact, the conflict was heating up. Patrick D. Hamburger, 30, of Lincoln, Neb. Regarding the downing of Extortion 17, all of the DEVGRU Operators aboard were members of the Gold Squadron. Instead, two rigorous U. S. military investigations followed every moment of the mission to determine what went wrong on Extortion 17s final flight. At the pilots request, the AC-130 flashed an infrared spotlight, which could be seen only through night vision goggles, to light up the landing zone. That night, nearly 10 years after the U.S. had gone to war in Afghanistan, Lee believed they were the best team for this dangerous mission. In March 2002, two MH-47s were downed by machine gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire while close to ground level. When the auto-complete results are available, use the up and down arrows to review and Enter to select. Extortion 17 and its 38 occupants would not return. Near the site of the Extortion 17 crash stands a memorial to Taliban fighters killed in the August 2011 battle during which Extortion 17 was shot down. According to Glover, improved systems in place enable U.S. forces to monitor a target for days or even weeks prior to an operation, so they theoretically will know of even well-hidden potential RPG shooters throughout a village before transport helicopters first touch down. | READ MORE. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment (General Support Aviation Battalion), Aurora, Colorado, Chief Warrant Officer Bryan J. Nichols, 31, of Hays, Kan. Though both noted that airborne sensor coverage and closer AH-64 gunship escort should be considered in future operations, nothing could have kept the shooters from firing their RPGs that night. In The Final Flight of Extortion 17, Ed Darack debunks this theory and others and uncovers the truth behind this mysterious tragedy. LOL, Ray Williams 509th RRCUV (Army Security Agency) Feb68-Apr71. Lee had just flown the night before on a similar mission with one of the pilots, David Carter. He finished his contract with the Army shortly afterward, and that September enrolled in Southern Methodist Universitys Dedman School of Law. The United States military continually works to improve protection for transport helicopters and their occupants, according to Glover and Brady. Andrew W. Harvell, 26, of Long Beach, California, Tech. Fallen Angel.. The two military investigations, one conducted by United States Central Command and one by the multi-service Joint Combat Assessment Team, pored over the details of the crash with excruciating focus and concluded that no planners or participants bore any fault regarding the circumstances leading to the shootdown of Extortion 17. The crash claimed the lives of 38 personnel, including 22 special operations forces in Afghanistan Aug. 6, 2011. Located in a remote and dangerous province in eastern Afghanistan, the base was the target of near-constant rocket attacks from Taliban insurgents. [11] At 22:37 (local time) on the night of 5 August, a platoon of 47 U.S. Army Rangers left a forward operating base in Logar Province via two CH-47D transport helicopters, one of which would later be involved in the accident. Insurgents fired at the Chinook, severed one of. The two may have been those who escaped Apache cannon fire, or they may have split away from either of the groups that formed after the start of the raid. Don Brown, a former U.S. Navy JAG officer stationed at the Pentagon, and former Special Assistant United . It is also the most disastrous incident in the. An official investigation found no evidence of a pre-planned ambush, though it did suggest that other helicopter activity in the area could have tipped off Taliban fighters that more helicopters could be approaching, according to the report. He knew the pilots and crew members aboard Extortion 17. Connor Mendez, courtesy of U.S. Army. His account of the brave pilots, crew, and passengers of Extortion 17 . This is the Group Burial for unidentified remains of casualties of the Chinook helicopter (CH-47D 89-00175) which crashed in Afghanistan on August 6, 2011. Immediately after Ryan shared an intimate photo of his own, the cybercriminal demanded $5,000, threatening to make the photo public and send it to Ryan's family and friends. But we are still sending people to another country to fight, and we need to understand why were doing that, he said. When the Boeing CH-47D Chinook helicopter was hit, all 38 onboard were instantly killed. Originally just two people, the group eventually swelled to a total of nine or ten fighters, and the special operations task force commander and the Immediate Reaction Force commander became concerned that it might include Tahir. [29], Other reports alleged that the Taliban had laid an elaborate trap for American special-operations forces, luring them in with false information. The SEAL commander assembled his force: 17 Navy SEALs, five Navy combat support specialists, three U.S. Air Force Special Tactics Airmen, seven Afghan Special Forces operators, an Afghan interpreter, and a military working dog. But one thing that doesnt fade is never forgetting what they did.. Lee remained in Afghanistan flying combat missions for another eight months before returning home in the spring of 2012. Around 02:23, the two helicopters departed the forward base. Afghanistan has long been a counter-insurgency campaign: The United States strategy has been to win Afghan trust through cooperation and aid. The previous highest U.S. death toll from a single incident in the war came from a rocket attack on a Chinook helicopter carrying Navy SEALs during Operation Red Wings on June 28, 2005. And now, the government wants to make the Taliban legitamet. [7][27][28] During the battle, American forces observed a small group of Taliban trying to flee the scene. He would not have hesitated to fly with any of them. A Black Hawk Down of the war in Afghanistan, the deadliest day for the U.S. in 12 years of that conflictand a military investigation that covered up evidence of an inside job by the Taliban. The tempo of the missions did not decrease. The five other Navy casualties were NSW (Naval Special Warfare) support personnel; in addition to these, three AFSOC operators, one Combat Controller and two Pararescuemen, all members of the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, died in the crash. Austin Williams visits the gravesite of U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Christopher C. Campbell in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, May 30, 2016. [43][44], American rules of engagement were tightened by Gen. Stanley McChrystal in 2009 in order to improve American counterinsurgency strategy. Directors Karl Horstmann Stephen Spivey Writer Stephen Spivey Stars Sean Hannity Raj Kala Two fired at roughly the same time. Rest in peace, gentlemen; you will not be forgotten. The team boarded Extortion 17 with Dave Carter and Bryan Nichols at the controls. When asked what lessons Americans can draw from the crash of Extortion 17, Lees answer is simple: Americans should care about what happens in Afghanistan because theyve sent Americans to war there. Six weeks into his deployment, Lee experienced his worst day as a helicopter pilot to that point. Extortion 17 is a name etched in our minds as one of the worst losses our military has ever experienced. Planners then chose a new landing zone for the IRF, but it was large enough to accommodate only one Chinook. For helicopter crews in Afghanistan, the most dangerous times are landing and taking off. The "had Seal team 6 killed" is a likely reference to what's known as the "Extortion 17" incident, the August 2011 tragedy in which a Chinook military helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan,. At the time of the Juy Zarin raid, the battalion had been flying in Afghanistan for about two weeks. At any moment, they could come under rocket attack. "It's a math problem. He presents the Final Flight of EXTORTION 17 (spoken one seven and seventeen), like a Defense Attorney or an investigator. Forces Killed in Helicopter Crash", "30 Americans Killed in Afghanistan Helicopter Crash", "Pentagon names 30 Americans killed in downed Afghan chopper", "Pentagon releases names of 30 Americans killed in Afghanistan helicopter crash", "22 Navy SEALs among 30 U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan as NATO helicopter is shot down", "30 Americans, including 22 Navy SEALs, killed in Afghan copter crash", "Names of Afghan Helicopter Attack Victims Released", "The OBJECTIVE GINOSA strike Payback for the shootdown of Extortion 17", "Military killed Taliban who downed US helicopter", "Afghan soldiers enter a Taliban nest without U.S. troops by their side", "Congress to probe lethal crash that killed SEAL Team 6 members", "A retired Air Force captain says Pentagon covered up real cause of deadly chopper crash", "A Retired Air Force Captain Says Pentagon Covered Up Real Cause of Deadly Chopper Crash", "Rules of Engagement Are a Dilemma for U.S. God sees you, You do see that A-12(1963! The shooters origin remains a mystery. As the Chinook CH-47 transport helicopter (call sign: Extortion 17) carrying 30 U.S. troops, seven Afghan commandos, an Afghan civilian interpreter and a U.S. military dog approached, the. They heard a helicopter coming, they grabbed their RPGs, and they fired in quick succession, Darack said. The Tangi Valley is a strategic terrain that connects the two primary highways that lead to Kabul. Director Franois Garcia Writer Sandeep Panesar Stars Robert O'Neill (archive footage) Patricia Economo Enrique Garcia They may have seen Extortion 17 and its landing zone through their own night vision goggles or simply aimed by sound alone. He was assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment(General Support Aviation Battalion), New Century, Kansas, Staff Sgt. The first round sailed past the helicopter. One rocket struck a rotor blade, causing the aircraft to crash almost instantly. Lee earned his wings at Fort Rucker, Ala., then deployed to Pakistan, where he did humanitarian missions, learning to fly into and out of mountainous terrain. Troops in Afghanistan Defense Department officials and military leaders testified at a hearing on the investigation of the August 20111 death of 30 U.S. servicemen in. Editors note: This story originally appeared in October 2017. Soldiers killed in Chinook shot down on Saturday came from 24 U.S. states First full list of names, ages and hometowns revealed - 17 were Navy SEALs Eye witnesses to the crash describe seeing. 1h 33m "A U.S. Army helicopter carrying 30 Americans, most members of the elite Navy SEAL Team 6 is shot down in Afghanistan. 3 U.S. Army Reserve personnel from the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment. That assault team captured Tahirs compound and some of his men. So if there was a added black box installed on this Aircraft there should be a maintenance record? Gold Star father Bill Vaughn had a heartfelt message to American "leaders" while discussing a documentary that investigates the Extortion 17 helicopter crash in Afghanistan. I am so proud to be an American and I thank all of the families left behind to mourn their loss. This group grew in number over the course of the night, but American forces were at first too preoccupied to engage. The following passage, published in The Navy Times, seems to support that assertion. However, the Afghan government forces did not occupy the base, which was seized by the Taliban shortly after the departure of American forces. The IRF commander then made a critical decision: In order to get everyone on the ground as quickly as possible and deny the Taliban time to react, he ordered the entire force to fly in Extortion 17. Recovery of wreckage from the crash site lasted until 9 August 2011. As they started their descent, Lee heard a loud popping noise. The extreme G-forces killed everyone on board within a fraction of a second, Darack said. God bless all of them- the bravest of the brave. Despite the risk, operations like these were taking place with such frequency in Afghanistan they only made news when they produced a spectacular success, like the bin Laden mission. To lose even one precious life is too many, and the United States lost 38 soldiers that day. This was preventable only if they just had not taken off that night, Lee said. [2][38], On 10 August 2011, the U.S. military stated that the insurgent who fired the rocket-propelled grenade had been killed only two days afterward in an F-16 airstrike, saying only that intelligence gained on the ground provided "a high degree of confidence" that the person was among those killed in the airstrike from two days earlier, but providing no other details. In 2006, he was called into Afghanistan, where he turned 25. One of the most significant tactical evolutions of the Afghanistan conflict is the ever-heavier use of unmanned aerial systems and other airborne intelligence-gathering systems. A Taliban fighter shot the helicopter out of the sky with a rocket-propelled grenade and all aboard were killedthe single greatest loss of American life in the Afghan war. The crash is referred to as Extortion 17 by the callsign of the CH-47 Chinook helicopter involved in the crash. August 2011 Attack on U.S. As he did, he felt the craft leveling off. Spec Ops Magazine 2023 All Rights Reserved. Theres no precedent for this. [citation needed] Doubts about this story were raised by families and other concerned citizens despite the fact that the Navy SEAL team aboard Extortion 17 was a different squadron than that which had killed Osama bin Laden three months earlier. The vast majority miss. Over time, certain memories will fade, certain details will fade. Lee heard the call, and he knew what it meant. In less than five seconds, the helicopter crashed, killing all occupants, and approximately 30 seconds later, one of the AH-64 Apache helicopters radioed in the crash. Ill try to reply the best I can. ", "Taliban laid trap for Chinook: official", "Honor Roll: Remembering the 30 U.S. Extortion 17 and 16 werent MH-47s and their crews were not Night Stalkers. Through the goggles, the landing zone shone brilliantly. Find the perfect extortion 17 stock photo, image, vector, illustration or 360 image. . Theyre going after in very hostile environments, who know the terrain very well, who know the battlescape very well, Darack said. So where did it go?? The military's public contradictions raise more questions than answers. The insurgents had no way of knowing the helicopter would be coming in, at the speed it was coming and at the altitude, Darack said. By On Aug. 6, 2011, insurgent forces in Afghanistan shot down an American aircraft. As the ground assault force rushed toward Tahirs compound, Extortion 17 and 16 sped back to base, where they were refueled, and awaited word to extract the team, evacuate wounded, or race reinforcing troops to Juy Zarin. You also want to come in from a different direction for the element of surprise.. The RPG is not a laser. Thirty members of the American special forces have been killed in Afghanistan in the deadliest day of the 10-year war for US military personnel when the Taliban shot down . The helicopter fell from the sky, killing all 38 on board. Around 2:40 a.m., an Apache pilot flying in support came on the radio and shouted: Fallen Angel. Seconds later, with the Chinook just over 100 feet off the ground and traveling at 58 mph, two or three previously unseen fighters emerged from the tower of a two-story building roughly 220 yards south of the helicopter, shouldering RPG launchers. Six minutes from their estimated landing time, Extortion 16 broke away from the lead Chinook and orbited at a location close enough to help if needed. Here, in silence, are the names and photographs of all 30 men. The second shot hit the rear tail rotor assembly. The immediate reaction force Extortion 17 carried should have been flown in two helicopters: Senior JSOC and aviation planners both agreed that the best course of action was to put the entire . What are the odds? On such missions, the Chinook pilots nearly always fly at night, wearing night vision goggles, or NVGs. The article stated that the helicopter crashed after an RPG round impacted the aft rotor assembly. The SEAL task force was monitoring this activity, and they were soon called upon to deploy quickly into the northern end of the valley to intercept Tahir and capture him and those moving with him. Naval Special Warfare support personnel: Two, 3 U.S. Army Reserve personnel (Aircrew) from the, This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 20:01. He said that insurgents had assumed a strong tactical position without knowledge of the helicopter's flight path. extortion 17 crash photos. The military has worked diligently to more tightly integrate gunship escorts with transport craft, according to Brady. Thirty Americans perished in the blink of an eye, half of which comprised an entire 'troop' from SEAL Team 6's Gold Squadron. Flying low, the pilots have to maneuver a machine weighing up to 50,000 pounds over mountains, under cover of darkness, in swirling wind and dust, wearing night vision goggles. The 30 American Servicemen killed in action (KIA) with the downing of Extortion 17. In a new book The Final Mission of Extortion 17 published by Smithsonian Books, journalist and photographer Ed Darack revisits the shootdown of Extortion 17, a Chinook bearing U.S. and . Alexander J. Bennett, 24, of Tacoma, Wash. There's also that little issue that came up when 6 Navy SEALs' funerals were conducted by a Muslim Cleric that condemned them to Hell during the service. It was reported that the Taliban fighters had no information of the helicopter's flight path and that they had been in the right place at the right time. [11], In 2013, Congressman Jason Chaffetz said that he would hold an investigation of the United States House Oversight Subcommittee on National Security into the matter. The downing of Extortion 17 spurred a number of conspiracy theories, such as the idea that the shootdown was revenge for bin Laden's death. Early media reports suggested that the Army had been tardy to recover flight recorders from the downed Chinook, and, as a consequence, the recorders had been swept away by the flood. Lee, now a captain, was placed in command of a Chinook helicopter unit at Forward Operating Base Shank. Terms of Use The resulting explosion destroyed the aft rotor assembly. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service. It means being informed. In the afternoon of 6 August, a flash flood swept through the area, washing away parts of the wreckage. In her first interview about the incident, Marquez said: "I had the sensor operators immediately shift to the eight insurgents the helicopters had taken out. Operating with no lights save for the faint green glow of night vision goggles and cockpit instrument panels, the two helicopters, call signs Extortion 17 (one-seven) and Extortion 16, lifted into the darkness and accelerated toward a destination less than 20 miles west. One of the engines flew off, and the other caught fire. The events that unfolded that night are commonly referred to as Extortion 17, the call sign for the helicopter transporting the special operations personnel. He grew up in Tyler, went to Texas A&M;, joined the Corps of Cadets and stared in shock at the news that two planes slammed into the World Trade Center and another into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001. Since the shootdown of Extortion 17, the military has continued to gain vital experience and equipment to enable an ever greater understanding of an enemy force, aiming to know every combatant and potential combatant and his weapon system before a raid. Strange, 25, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL/Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist) Jon T. Tumilson, 35, of Rockford, Iowa, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL)Aaron C. Vaughn, 30, of Stuart, Florida, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL)Jason R. Workman, 32, of Blanding, Utah, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL)Jesse D. Pittman, 27, of Ukiah, California, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 2nd Class (SEAL)Nicholas P. Spehar, 24, of Saint Paul, Minnesota, Chief Warrant Officer David R. Carter, 47, of Centennial, Colo. For Lee, there was no time to reflect on how close he had come to dying. Landing in deserts or mountainsides, the helicopter rotors kick up clouds of sand and dust, causing brownouts that can blind a pilot. That June, the U.S. military launched Operation Hammer Down to drive out insurgents entrenched in remote strongholds of eastern Afghanistan. We were on goggles the whole time. The missions commanders decided to insert another team to go after Tahir while the Rangers held the compound. )/SR-71 blackbird cloud behind the chinook; saying thats safe distance! The duo may also have had no ties to Tahir or any of his suspected fighters, and attacked the helicopter on their own. Courtesy . All 38 passengers aboard Extortion 17, including 30 U.S. military personnel, eight Afghans and a U.S. military working dog, were killed after the transport helicopter was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. AC-130 gunships orbiting overhead directed two AH-64 Apache attack helicopters to fire on and kill five enemy fighters. [11][24] These reports were erroneous; the CH-47D airframe does not contain flight recorders, although the MH-47 variant does have a flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder. Senior Chief Robert James Reeves was one of those Americans. Should the Apache pilots have fired into the stand of trees after the two fighters ducked out of sight? Photo by Jake Simkin for Coffee or Die Magazine. It also became one of the most devastating death tolls of the U.S. Special Operations Forces. #neverforgotten #screwedbygovt #demmandanswers. First, the Obama administration's Defense Department's crash report stated that there were no eyes in the sky over the Chinook . A source from the Navys special operations community described the reaction as Shock and disbelief. A few minutes past 2 a.m.on August 6, 2011, at a dusty forward operating base40 miles south of Kabul, Afghanistan, the rotors of two U.S. Army CH-47D Chinooks began to turn. The theories suggest that Afghan forces leaked information to the Taliban about the mission. Several minutes later, a 20-man Pathfinder team (specializing in downed-aircraft rescue and recovery) arrived at the site. The US soldiers killed in the 2011 Afghanistan Boeing Chinook shoot-down with the call sign Extortion 17 (Photo: XY) SGT Alexander J. Bennett SPC Spencer Duncan (youngest onboard) CWO Bryan J. Nichols

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when someone ignores you on social media
2022
01.08

extortion 17 crash photos

On 6 August 2011, a U.S. CH-47D Chinook military helicopter operating with the call sign Extortion 17 (pronounced "one-seven") was shot down while transporting a Quick Reaction Force attempting to reinforce a Joint Special Operations Command unit of the 75th Ranger Regiment in the Tangi Valley in Maidan Wardak province, southwest of Kabul, American forces continued to carry out operations in the area (mostly via helicopter and using special forces), encountering resistance from Taliban fighters on several occasions. The crash killed all 38 people on board including 25 American special operations personnel, five United States Army National Guard and Army Reserve crewmen, seven Afghan commandos, and one Afghan interpreter as well as a U.S. military working dog. The 30 Navy SEALs and other Special Forces personnel, along with the Helicopter flight crew because American Military and Political leaders threw these men under the bus the enemy was driving and then covered it all up with lies and deceit. The basis of the provocative hit military documentary Fallen Angel Call Sign: Extortion 17. The circumstances surrounding the events of Extortion 17 are tragic. The Final Mission of Extortion 17: Special Ops, Helicopter Support, SEAL Team Six, and the Deadliest Day of the U.S. War in Afghanistan Hardcover - September 19, 2017 by Ed Darack (Author) 223 ratings Editors' pick Best History See all formats and editions Kindle $13.99 Read with Our Free App Audiobook $0.00 Free with your Audible trial Hardcover Yesterday, the Pentagon released the names of the 30 troops-- Navy SEALs, soldiers, and airmen, killed in the helicopter downed by Taliban fighters in eastern Afghanistan last weekend. No one is planting victory gardens, and were not rationing. The forward rotor system then tore off, stressed by the imbalance and the strain of carrying what would normally be a shared load. [11][12], As the Rangers approached the target compound, ISR aircraft observed several people leaving the compound. When the shock subsided, questions arose and persisted. She had just given birth to their first child. [11] Going forward, the two AH-64 Apache helicopters would be engaged in tracking those two groups of Taliban, and hence unable to provide surveillance or fire support to the inbound helicopter carrying the SEAL team. A senior Afghan government official, speaking anonymously, said that Taliban commander Qari Tahir had fed American forces false information about a meeting of insurgent leaders and fighters waited for the helicopter from both sides of a steep valley: "The Taliban knew which route the helicopter would take. The incident became known as "Extortion 17" after the helicopter . The following was transcribed from the above video press conference. Lieutenant Commander (SEAL) Jonas B. Kelsall, 32, of Shreveport, Louisiana, Special Warfare Operator Master Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Louis J. Langlais, 44, of Santa Barbara, California, Special Warfare Operator Senior Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Thomas A. Ratzlaff, 34, of Green Forest, Arkansas, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician Senior Chief Petty Officer (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist) Kraig M. Vickers 36, of Kokomo, Hawaii, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Brian R. Bill, 31, of Stamford, Connecticut, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) John W. Faas, 31, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Kevin A. Houston, 35, of West Hyannisport, Massachusetts, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Matthew D. Mason, 37, of Kansas City, Missouri, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Stephen M. Mills, 35, of Fort Worth, Texas, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician Chief Petty Officer(Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist/Diver) Nicholas H. Null, 30, of Washington, West Virginia, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Robert J. Reeves, 32, of Shreveport, Louisiana, Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Heath M. Robinson, 34, of Detroit, Michigan, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL) Darrik C. Benson, 28, of Angwin, California, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL/Parachutist) Christopher G. Campbell, 36, of Jacksonville, North Carolina, Information Systems Technician Petty Officer 1st Class (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist/Freefall Parachutist) Jared W. Day, 28, of Taylorsville, Utah, Master-at-Arms Petty Officer 1st Class (Expeditionary Warfare Specialist) John Douangdara, 26, of South Sioux City, Nebraska, Cryptologist Technician(Collection)Petty Officer 1st Class(Expeditionary Warfare Specialist) Michael J. In March 2009, the U.S. 10th Mountain Division established a base in Tangi Valley after increased Taliban activity in the area. As is routine on such missions, two Apache attack helicopters provided extra cover and security for Extortion 17, while circling above was an AC-130 aircraft, a gunship that also provides surveillance. Classified reports, published by Wikileaks, teem with notes from pilots and crew of all types of military helicopters who saw RPG attacks throughout the war. [11], The 30 American deaths represent the greatest loss of U.S. military lives in a single incident in the war in Afghanistan that began in 2001. The Final Flight of Extortion 17 It was the deadliest helicopter crash in the history of U.S. special operations. When the two Chinooks had first touched down in the village, a group of eight fighters armed with AK-47 rifles and RPG-7 rocket-propelled grenade launchers bolted from the compound. With 38 people killed on board, it was the largest single-day loss of life in naval special warfare history and the largest single-day loss of life during the war in Afghanistan. Just three months earlier, members of a counterpart SEAL Team 6 squadron successfully raided a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and killed Osama bin Laden. Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. In fact, the conflict was heating up. Patrick D. Hamburger, 30, of Lincoln, Neb. Regarding the downing of Extortion 17, all of the DEVGRU Operators aboard were members of the Gold Squadron. Instead, two rigorous U. S. military investigations followed every moment of the mission to determine what went wrong on Extortion 17s final flight. At the pilots request, the AC-130 flashed an infrared spotlight, which could be seen only through night vision goggles, to light up the landing zone. That night, nearly 10 years after the U.S. had gone to war in Afghanistan, Lee believed they were the best team for this dangerous mission. In March 2002, two MH-47s were downed by machine gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire while close to ground level. When the auto-complete results are available, use the up and down arrows to review and Enter to select. Extortion 17 and its 38 occupants would not return. Near the site of the Extortion 17 crash stands a memorial to Taliban fighters killed in the August 2011 battle during which Extortion 17 was shot down. According to Glover, improved systems in place enable U.S. forces to monitor a target for days or even weeks prior to an operation, so they theoretically will know of even well-hidden potential RPG shooters throughout a village before transport helicopters first touch down. | READ MORE. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment (General Support Aviation Battalion), Aurora, Colorado, Chief Warrant Officer Bryan J. Nichols, 31, of Hays, Kan. Though both noted that airborne sensor coverage and closer AH-64 gunship escort should be considered in future operations, nothing could have kept the shooters from firing their RPGs that night. In The Final Flight of Extortion 17, Ed Darack debunks this theory and others and uncovers the truth behind this mysterious tragedy. LOL, Ray Williams 509th RRCUV (Army Security Agency) Feb68-Apr71. Lee had just flown the night before on a similar mission with one of the pilots, David Carter. He finished his contract with the Army shortly afterward, and that September enrolled in Southern Methodist Universitys Dedman School of Law. The United States military continually works to improve protection for transport helicopters and their occupants, according to Glover and Brady. Andrew W. Harvell, 26, of Long Beach, California, Tech. Fallen Angel.. The two military investigations, one conducted by United States Central Command and one by the multi-service Joint Combat Assessment Team, pored over the details of the crash with excruciating focus and concluded that no planners or participants bore any fault regarding the circumstances leading to the shootdown of Extortion 17. The crash claimed the lives of 38 personnel, including 22 special operations forces in Afghanistan Aug. 6, 2011. Located in a remote and dangerous province in eastern Afghanistan, the base was the target of near-constant rocket attacks from Taliban insurgents. [11] At 22:37 (local time) on the night of 5 August, a platoon of 47 U.S. Army Rangers left a forward operating base in Logar Province via two CH-47D transport helicopters, one of which would later be involved in the accident. Insurgents fired at the Chinook, severed one of. The two may have been those who escaped Apache cannon fire, or they may have split away from either of the groups that formed after the start of the raid. Don Brown, a former U.S. Navy JAG officer stationed at the Pentagon, and former Special Assistant United . It is also the most disastrous incident in the. An official investigation found no evidence of a pre-planned ambush, though it did suggest that other helicopter activity in the area could have tipped off Taliban fighters that more helicopters could be approaching, according to the report. He knew the pilots and crew members aboard Extortion 17. Connor Mendez, courtesy of U.S. Army. His account of the brave pilots, crew, and passengers of Extortion 17 . This is the Group Burial for unidentified remains of casualties of the Chinook helicopter (CH-47D 89-00175) which crashed in Afghanistan on August 6, 2011. Immediately after Ryan shared an intimate photo of his own, the cybercriminal demanded $5,000, threatening to make the photo public and send it to Ryan's family and friends. But we are still sending people to another country to fight, and we need to understand why were doing that, he said. When the Boeing CH-47D Chinook helicopter was hit, all 38 onboard were instantly killed. Originally just two people, the group eventually swelled to a total of nine or ten fighters, and the special operations task force commander and the Immediate Reaction Force commander became concerned that it might include Tahir. [29], Other reports alleged that the Taliban had laid an elaborate trap for American special-operations forces, luring them in with false information. The SEAL commander assembled his force: 17 Navy SEALs, five Navy combat support specialists, three U.S. Air Force Special Tactics Airmen, seven Afghan Special Forces operators, an Afghan interpreter, and a military working dog. But one thing that doesnt fade is never forgetting what they did.. Lee remained in Afghanistan flying combat missions for another eight months before returning home in the spring of 2012. Around 02:23, the two helicopters departed the forward base. Afghanistan has long been a counter-insurgency campaign: The United States strategy has been to win Afghan trust through cooperation and aid. The previous highest U.S. death toll from a single incident in the war came from a rocket attack on a Chinook helicopter carrying Navy SEALs during Operation Red Wings on June 28, 2005. And now, the government wants to make the Taliban legitamet. [7][27][28] During the battle, American forces observed a small group of Taliban trying to flee the scene. He would not have hesitated to fly with any of them. A Black Hawk Down of the war in Afghanistan, the deadliest day for the U.S. in 12 years of that conflictand a military investigation that covered up evidence of an inside job by the Taliban. The tempo of the missions did not decrease. The five other Navy casualties were NSW (Naval Special Warfare) support personnel; in addition to these, three AFSOC operators, one Combat Controller and two Pararescuemen, all members of the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, died in the crash. Austin Williams visits the gravesite of U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Christopher C. Campbell in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, May 30, 2016. [43][44], American rules of engagement were tightened by Gen. Stanley McChrystal in 2009 in order to improve American counterinsurgency strategy. Directors Karl Horstmann Stephen Spivey Writer Stephen Spivey Stars Sean Hannity Raj Kala Two fired at roughly the same time. Rest in peace, gentlemen; you will not be forgotten. The team boarded Extortion 17 with Dave Carter and Bryan Nichols at the controls. When asked what lessons Americans can draw from the crash of Extortion 17, Lees answer is simple: Americans should care about what happens in Afghanistan because theyve sent Americans to war there. Six weeks into his deployment, Lee experienced his worst day as a helicopter pilot to that point. Extortion 17 is a name etched in our minds as one of the worst losses our military has ever experienced. Planners then chose a new landing zone for the IRF, but it was large enough to accommodate only one Chinook. For helicopter crews in Afghanistan, the most dangerous times are landing and taking off. The "had Seal team 6 killed" is a likely reference to what's known as the "Extortion 17" incident, the August 2011 tragedy in which a Chinook military helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan,. At the time of the Juy Zarin raid, the battalion had been flying in Afghanistan for about two weeks. At any moment, they could come under rocket attack. "It's a math problem. He presents the Final Flight of EXTORTION 17 (spoken one seven and seventeen), like a Defense Attorney or an investigator. Forces Killed in Helicopter Crash", "30 Americans Killed in Afghanistan Helicopter Crash", "Pentagon names 30 Americans killed in downed Afghan chopper", "Pentagon releases names of 30 Americans killed in Afghanistan helicopter crash", "22 Navy SEALs among 30 U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan as NATO helicopter is shot down", "30 Americans, including 22 Navy SEALs, killed in Afghan copter crash", "Names of Afghan Helicopter Attack Victims Released", "The OBJECTIVE GINOSA strike Payback for the shootdown of Extortion 17", "Military killed Taliban who downed US helicopter", "Afghan soldiers enter a Taliban nest without U.S. troops by their side", "Congress to probe lethal crash that killed SEAL Team 6 members", "A retired Air Force captain says Pentagon covered up real cause of deadly chopper crash", "A Retired Air Force Captain Says Pentagon Covered Up Real Cause of Deadly Chopper Crash", "Rules of Engagement Are a Dilemma for U.S. God sees you, You do see that A-12(1963! The shooters origin remains a mystery. As the Chinook CH-47 transport helicopter (call sign: Extortion 17) carrying 30 U.S. troops, seven Afghan commandos, an Afghan civilian interpreter and a U.S. military dog approached, the. They heard a helicopter coming, they grabbed their RPGs, and they fired in quick succession, Darack said. The Tangi Valley is a strategic terrain that connects the two primary highways that lead to Kabul. Director Franois Garcia Writer Sandeep Panesar Stars Robert O'Neill (archive footage) Patricia Economo Enrique Garcia They may have seen Extortion 17 and its landing zone through their own night vision goggles or simply aimed by sound alone. He was assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment(General Support Aviation Battalion), New Century, Kansas, Staff Sgt. The first round sailed past the helicopter. One rocket struck a rotor blade, causing the aircraft to crash almost instantly. Lee earned his wings at Fort Rucker, Ala., then deployed to Pakistan, where he did humanitarian missions, learning to fly into and out of mountainous terrain. Troops in Afghanistan Defense Department officials and military leaders testified at a hearing on the investigation of the August 20111 death of 30 U.S. servicemen in. Editors note: This story originally appeared in October 2017. Soldiers killed in Chinook shot down on Saturday came from 24 U.S. states First full list of names, ages and hometowns revealed - 17 were Navy SEALs Eye witnesses to the crash describe seeing. 1h 33m "A U.S. Army helicopter carrying 30 Americans, most members of the elite Navy SEAL Team 6 is shot down in Afghanistan. 3 U.S. Army Reserve personnel from the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment. That assault team captured Tahirs compound and some of his men. So if there was a added black box installed on this Aircraft there should be a maintenance record? Gold Star father Bill Vaughn had a heartfelt message to American "leaders" while discussing a documentary that investigates the Extortion 17 helicopter crash in Afghanistan. I am so proud to be an American and I thank all of the families left behind to mourn their loss. This group grew in number over the course of the night, but American forces were at first too preoccupied to engage. The following passage, published in The Navy Times, seems to support that assertion. However, the Afghan government forces did not occupy the base, which was seized by the Taliban shortly after the departure of American forces. The IRF commander then made a critical decision: In order to get everyone on the ground as quickly as possible and deny the Taliban time to react, he ordered the entire force to fly in Extortion 17. Recovery of wreckage from the crash site lasted until 9 August 2011. As they started their descent, Lee heard a loud popping noise. The extreme G-forces killed everyone on board within a fraction of a second, Darack said. God bless all of them- the bravest of the brave. Despite the risk, operations like these were taking place with such frequency in Afghanistan they only made news when they produced a spectacular success, like the bin Laden mission. To lose even one precious life is too many, and the United States lost 38 soldiers that day. This was preventable only if they just had not taken off that night, Lee said. [2][38], On 10 August 2011, the U.S. military stated that the insurgent who fired the rocket-propelled grenade had been killed only two days afterward in an F-16 airstrike, saying only that intelligence gained on the ground provided "a high degree of confidence" that the person was among those killed in the airstrike from two days earlier, but providing no other details. In 2006, he was called into Afghanistan, where he turned 25. One of the most significant tactical evolutions of the Afghanistan conflict is the ever-heavier use of unmanned aerial systems and other airborne intelligence-gathering systems. A Taliban fighter shot the helicopter out of the sky with a rocket-propelled grenade and all aboard were killedthe single greatest loss of American life in the Afghan war. The crash is referred to as Extortion 17 by the callsign of the CH-47 Chinook helicopter involved in the crash. August 2011 Attack on U.S. As he did, he felt the craft leveling off. Spec Ops Magazine 2023 All Rights Reserved. Theres no precedent for this. [citation needed] Doubts about this story were raised by families and other concerned citizens despite the fact that the Navy SEAL team aboard Extortion 17 was a different squadron than that which had killed Osama bin Laden three months earlier. The vast majority miss. Over time, certain memories will fade, certain details will fade. Lee heard the call, and he knew what it meant. In less than five seconds, the helicopter crashed, killing all occupants, and approximately 30 seconds later, one of the AH-64 Apache helicopters radioed in the crash. Ill try to reply the best I can. ", "Taliban laid trap for Chinook: official", "Honor Roll: Remembering the 30 U.S. Extortion 17 and 16 werent MH-47s and their crews were not Night Stalkers. Through the goggles, the landing zone shone brilliantly. Find the perfect extortion 17 stock photo, image, vector, illustration or 360 image. . Theyre going after in very hostile environments, who know the terrain very well, who know the battlescape very well, Darack said. So where did it go?? The military's public contradictions raise more questions than answers. The insurgents had no way of knowing the helicopter would be coming in, at the speed it was coming and at the altitude, Darack said. By On Aug. 6, 2011, insurgent forces in Afghanistan shot down an American aircraft. As the ground assault force rushed toward Tahirs compound, Extortion 17 and 16 sped back to base, where they were refueled, and awaited word to extract the team, evacuate wounded, or race reinforcing troops to Juy Zarin. You also want to come in from a different direction for the element of surprise.. The RPG is not a laser. Thirty members of the American special forces have been killed in Afghanistan in the deadliest day of the 10-year war for US military personnel when the Taliban shot down . The helicopter fell from the sky, killing all 38 on board. Around 2:40 a.m., an Apache pilot flying in support came on the radio and shouted: Fallen Angel. Seconds later, with the Chinook just over 100 feet off the ground and traveling at 58 mph, two or three previously unseen fighters emerged from the tower of a two-story building roughly 220 yards south of the helicopter, shouldering RPG launchers. Six minutes from their estimated landing time, Extortion 16 broke away from the lead Chinook and orbited at a location close enough to help if needed. Here, in silence, are the names and photographs of all 30 men. The second shot hit the rear tail rotor assembly. The immediate reaction force Extortion 17 carried should have been flown in two helicopters: Senior JSOC and aviation planners both agreed that the best course of action was to put the entire . What are the odds? On such missions, the Chinook pilots nearly always fly at night, wearing night vision goggles, or NVGs. The article stated that the helicopter crashed after an RPG round impacted the aft rotor assembly. The SEAL task force was monitoring this activity, and they were soon called upon to deploy quickly into the northern end of the valley to intercept Tahir and capture him and those moving with him. Naval Special Warfare support personnel: Two, 3 U.S. Army Reserve personnel (Aircrew) from the, This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 20:01. He said that insurgents had assumed a strong tactical position without knowledge of the helicopter's flight path. extortion 17 crash photos. The military has worked diligently to more tightly integrate gunship escorts with transport craft, according to Brady. Thirty Americans perished in the blink of an eye, half of which comprised an entire 'troop' from SEAL Team 6's Gold Squadron. Flying low, the pilots have to maneuver a machine weighing up to 50,000 pounds over mountains, under cover of darkness, in swirling wind and dust, wearing night vision goggles. The 30 American Servicemen killed in action (KIA) with the downing of Extortion 17. In a new book The Final Mission of Extortion 17 published by Smithsonian Books, journalist and photographer Ed Darack revisits the shootdown of Extortion 17, a Chinook bearing U.S. and . Alexander J. Bennett, 24, of Tacoma, Wash. There's also that little issue that came up when 6 Navy SEALs' funerals were conducted by a Muslim Cleric that condemned them to Hell during the service. It was reported that the Taliban fighters had no information of the helicopter's flight path and that they had been in the right place at the right time. [11], In 2013, Congressman Jason Chaffetz said that he would hold an investigation of the United States House Oversight Subcommittee on National Security into the matter. The downing of Extortion 17 spurred a number of conspiracy theories, such as the idea that the shootdown was revenge for bin Laden's death. Early media reports suggested that the Army had been tardy to recover flight recorders from the downed Chinook, and, as a consequence, the recorders had been swept away by the flood. Lee, now a captain, was placed in command of a Chinook helicopter unit at Forward Operating Base Shank. Terms of Use The resulting explosion destroyed the aft rotor assembly. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service. It means being informed. In the afternoon of 6 August, a flash flood swept through the area, washing away parts of the wreckage. In her first interview about the incident, Marquez said: "I had the sensor operators immediately shift to the eight insurgents the helicopters had taken out. Operating with no lights save for the faint green glow of night vision goggles and cockpit instrument panels, the two helicopters, call signs Extortion 17 (one-seven) and Extortion 16, lifted into the darkness and accelerated toward a destination less than 20 miles west. One of the engines flew off, and the other caught fire. The events that unfolded that night are commonly referred to as Extortion 17, the call sign for the helicopter transporting the special operations personnel. He grew up in Tyler, went to Texas A&M;, joined the Corps of Cadets and stared in shock at the news that two planes slammed into the World Trade Center and another into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001. Since the shootdown of Extortion 17, the military has continued to gain vital experience and equipment to enable an ever greater understanding of an enemy force, aiming to know every combatant and potential combatant and his weapon system before a raid. Strange, 25, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL/Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist) Jon T. Tumilson, 35, of Rockford, Iowa, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL)Aaron C. Vaughn, 30, of Stuart, Florida, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL)Jason R. Workman, 32, of Blanding, Utah, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class (SEAL)Jesse D. Pittman, 27, of Ukiah, California, Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 2nd Class (SEAL)Nicholas P. Spehar, 24, of Saint Paul, Minnesota, Chief Warrant Officer David R. Carter, 47, of Centennial, Colo. For Lee, there was no time to reflect on how close he had come to dying. Landing in deserts or mountainsides, the helicopter rotors kick up clouds of sand and dust, causing brownouts that can blind a pilot. That June, the U.S. military launched Operation Hammer Down to drive out insurgents entrenched in remote strongholds of eastern Afghanistan. We were on goggles the whole time. The missions commanders decided to insert another team to go after Tahir while the Rangers held the compound. )/SR-71 blackbird cloud behind the chinook; saying thats safe distance! The duo may also have had no ties to Tahir or any of his suspected fighters, and attacked the helicopter on their own. Courtesy . All 38 passengers aboard Extortion 17, including 30 U.S. military personnel, eight Afghans and a U.S. military working dog, were killed after the transport helicopter was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. AC-130 gunships orbiting overhead directed two AH-64 Apache attack helicopters to fire on and kill five enemy fighters. [11][24] These reports were erroneous; the CH-47D airframe does not contain flight recorders, although the MH-47 variant does have a flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder. Senior Chief Robert James Reeves was one of those Americans. Should the Apache pilots have fired into the stand of trees after the two fighters ducked out of sight? Photo by Jake Simkin for Coffee or Die Magazine. It also became one of the most devastating death tolls of the U.S. Special Operations Forces. #neverforgotten #screwedbygovt #demmandanswers. First, the Obama administration's Defense Department's crash report stated that there were no eyes in the sky over the Chinook . A source from the Navys special operations community described the reaction as Shock and disbelief. A few minutes past 2 a.m.on August 6, 2011, at a dusty forward operating base40 miles south of Kabul, Afghanistan, the rotors of two U.S. Army CH-47D Chinooks began to turn. The theories suggest that Afghan forces leaked information to the Taliban about the mission. Several minutes later, a 20-man Pathfinder team (specializing in downed-aircraft rescue and recovery) arrived at the site. The US soldiers killed in the 2011 Afghanistan Boeing Chinook shoot-down with the call sign Extortion 17 (Photo: XY) SGT Alexander J. Bennett SPC Spencer Duncan (youngest onboard) CWO Bryan J. Nichols Martin County, Nc Warrant Search, Amherst Nh Police Scanner, Number Of Holocaust Survivors 2021, Articles E

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