Operation Red Wing

The Navy has confirmed that a US Navy SEAL is under consideration for the Medal of Honor for his posthumous heroism in Afghanistan in what may become the most highly-decorated small unit for a single engagement in U.S. history.

It was also one of the costliest engagements for US spec ops forces in the Iraq-Afghanistan war, and stands as the deadliest day in SEAL Team history.

Lieutenant Michael Murphy (right) and two other members of the four-man recon team were killed in action in 2005 when they were ambushed and overrun by a numerically superior enemy force in the Hindu Kush mountains.   

Those who follow Medal of Honor news and rumors have long assumed that Murphy would receive the nation's highest valor award since the three others in the team, including the sole survivor who has since returned to covert ops, have been awarded the Navy Cross--second only to the Medal of Honor.

On 14 September, 2006, Petty Officer 2nd Class Danny P. Dietz (left) and Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew G. Axelson (below, right) were awarded the Navy Cross for "undaunted courage" and heroism. The survivng SEAL was also awarded a Navy Cross in a private cerermony. Great details about "The One"-- the surviving SEAL -- are found here.

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Based on the level of heroism being acknowedged, and that Murphy was not mentioned along with the others, indictes to many that a Medal of Honor for him will be forthcoming.

These are the basics: 28 June--As "Operation Red Wing", Murphy's team, thought to have been inserted along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border at an elevation of 10,000 feet, was tasked not for recon but as as a high-value target sniper team... the target--either Taliban commanders Mullah Muhammad Omar or Ahmad Shah, or perhaps Bin Laden himself.

Almost immediately the SEALs were fighting for their lives. Murphy called for an emergency extraction which was responded to by an eight-man SEAL team and eight members of the 160th Special Ops Airborne Army troops. As the rescue chopper, an MH-47 Chinook Night Stalker, was on final for rescue, it was hit by an RPG (perhaps even a SAM) and crashed, killing all aboard. The SEAL team fought on despite grave wounds; the pilot of an orbiting escort attack chopper reported the team was putting up "an unbelievable firefight."

According to the lone surviving SEAL who escaped and evaded the pursuing enemy and was hidden by a local Afghani shepherd until he was rescued, Lt. Murphy saved him from being killed at one point during the fight.

He said that Murphy was shot as he climbed to open, higher ground to report the situation by satellite phone. Despite his wounds, Murphy completed the call, and returned to the fight until he was killed. (Axelson is shown above).

Read today's New York Daily News account of the battle.

If awarded, Murphy's will be the third Medal of Honor of the Iraq-Afghanistan War; Army SFC Paul Ray Smith and Marine CPL Jason Dunham are the previous Recipients, both posthumous. 

Operation Red Wing Casualties

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Army KIAs were all assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) from Georgia. They were:

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

The SEALS killed were:

• --Chief Petty Officer Jacques J. Fontan, 36, of New Orleans, La.
• --Senior Chief Petty Officer Daniel R. Healy, 36, of Exeter, N.H.
• --Lt. Cmdr. Erik S. Kristensen, 33, of San Diego, Calif.
• --Petty Officer 1st Class Jeffery A. Lucas, 33, of Corbett, Ore.
• --Lt. Michael M. McGreevy, Jr., 30, of Portville, N.Y.
• --Petty Officer 2nd Class James Suh, 28, of Deerfield Beach, Fla.
• --Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric S. Patton, 22, of Boulder City, Nev.
• --Petty Officer 1st Class Jeffrey S. Taylor, 30, of Midway, W.

Healy, Patton and Suh were from SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team One out of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The others were assigned to SEAL Team 10 out of Virginia Beach, Va.

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May all of these fine men be remembered on the day that LT Michel P. Murphy, United States SEAL, is singled out for the kind of bravey we would find unbelievable, but SEALs consider just doing their job.

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May they rest in peace.

Comments

[Sasha]

If you're responding to me.. i'm not arnugig he didn't have a right to free speech, and i'm not willing to give up my right to free speech either.. But lets ask ourselves what that speech was about. Of what we've heard happened, what was it that caused Mr. Gates to begin expressing THAT free speech? Why was it not "Thank you officer, good job" scenerio? What was it that Crowley did that pissed Gates off? I haven't heard Gates say.. other than Crowley came into his house.. and I think Crowley had a very good explaination for doing so. Do you advise your kids that it's ok to talk back to the cop? Sure, you have the legal right to do those things, but WHY would you do them? I can stand on Main street yelling "cops suck, cops suck".. but unless i'm doing that to simply prove a point, I probably don't want to get pulled over by the local cops. To me, the crime of claiming racism when there is no evidence that it does, is as bad as being a racist. But I respect you and other peiople's opinions to the contrary.

[Irfan]

Dan wrote: "According to Murphy, the full extent of their eaghxnce was Crowley's asking Whalen to stay put while he checked things out. Essentially, Murphy said, Whalen did not talk to Crowley at all." Possible, I guess, but not probable. The named caller who remains at the scene of this type of call is rare. Like any third hand information, things are often lost in the process of police call taking and dispatching. If the caller is standing there when the officer arrives, he wants to move her to safety while keeping that door in view, then get a quick first-hand summary, (much like a reporter) of who, what, where, when and why. Obviously this would be a quick eaghxnce, 30 seconds to a minute, but an eaghxnce of info nonetheless.I never saw an officer, nor did I ever personally brush past a named caller who was waiting for me at this type of call. A bad car accident or some scene where a dying person was right within view, maybe you tell the caller to wait here while I try to save a life, but not at a property crime where taking the time to gather additional info might save your own life. My guess is there is more to this.

[Sukh]

He's not hearing Ms. Whalen claifry for the dispatcher that she now sees two suitcases and it may not be a break-in.. that she was actually calling on behalf of a senior citizen who was concerned that is was a robbery. Curious why we haven't heard much from, or about, the elder woman whom Whalen had called for, nor the driver, the "second black male". That said, the fact that Crowley suggested at some point that they were indeed two black males should not muddle the issue, no more than if he had had mentioned that the potential suspects were two Chinese Acrobats, if they were. They were the parties he came across, and that is their description. I think he made a good point in one interview I heard, when he said he was told by someone that there were two people who were breaking in the house.. He suggested that even if Gate's was indeed the owner, it could have been that two OTHER people may have been in his house, unkown to him (Gate's) or, that there could have been a domestic dispute. Imagine of either of those were true, and he had gone on his way, and something horrible had happened. We MIGHT just be hearing some say that he didn't bother to fully investigate because of their color. I dunno. He says "two black males" because that describes them, just as it would had a bank just been robbed, or if two black children were missing and an Amber Alert was issued. Two White Males, Two Black Males, I guess you'd only see a negative connotation in either one of those descriptions if you were prejudice?

[Amza]

O'Reilly Duran v. City of Douglas went on to say "We cannot, of cosrue, condone Duran's conduct; it was boorish, crass and, initially at least, unjustified. Our hard-working law enforcement officers surely deserve better treatment from members of the public. But disgraceful as Duran's behavior may have been, it was not illegal; criticism of the police is not a crime".Crowley is not expected to be an expert in constitutional law. As folks gathered in front of the porch, listening to Gates berate Crowley, there certainly could have become a point where Crowley felt that Gates was interering with the officers duties. To suggest that officer Crowley should not be in a position of authority based on this case, is blatently absurd.In court, a case like this could go either way, based on the facts, the state of mind of the parties, etc.. it's no slam dunk either way. No adjudication of the matter took place, the case was simply not prosecuted. Were it me, an unknown white guy, it would have been, you know it and I know it. It didn't BECAUSE of who he is and that he cried 'race'.The world isn't talking about this case because of free speech, the world is talking about this case because Gate's claims that the charge, whatever the charge, was made because he is black and Crowley is white.Still haven't seen anything to indicate that Gate's bases that claim on anything other than his perspective.If Crowley were a black officer do you think Gates would have been less offended that he came into the house to ensure everything was ok? I don't, because Gate's didn't come out onto the media markets shouting "Free Speech Free Speech", he came out yelling "Bias, Racism". And how often does someone get into a yelling match with a police officer who is responding to a break-in in progress in your own house? Do you REALLY think Crowley dislikes blacks and only teaches the class as a cover? I haven't heard a single word Crowley said that would lead us to believe that.

[Jaquelin]

Crowley says in the tapes something like "the glenetman is being uncooperative" this was when he didn't know this would become 'something'. The black officer has stated that he saw Gates being animated and agitated. Witnesses who gathered say the same thing. Gates has made no claim of Crowley calling him names, touching him, or expressing a racial motive. Crowley appears calm throughout, and nobody has stated otherwise, Gates not so much. Crowley investigated this matter in line with the procedures he was instructed to follow, according to Cambridge Police. Had Crowley not gone into the house, and the Professor and Mary Ann ended up being assaulted by the "two males, one possibly Hispanic", Crowley would be accused of failing to protect a black man. Gates was not arrested for breaking into the house. Gates was arrested for not allowing a police officer complete his investigating into reported crime in progress. To suggest that Gates was arrested for no reason is silly. Cop comes to your house, placing his life on the line, and has to listen to your nonsense, based on your preconceived expectation that a white cop must be racially motivated? Gate's didn't like the idea of this white cop coming into his house, ignorant of the fact that Crowley might have good reason to suspect that two criminals might very well be in that house, of whatever color. Had the responding cop been black, and the same series of events took place, we wouldn't be discussing this right now. REPEAT: Had the responding cop been black, this would be a non issue. It's not Crowley's racial bias that created this problem, it's Gates'. When and why Crowley mentioned "two black men" is quite secondary, the 'subjects' ended up being black males, so what, they also ended up being innocent. A cop who happens to be white, was trying to protect a homeowner who happens to be black, from a reported break-in by two other males who after the fact are found to be the black homeowner and driver. It was in Mr. Gate's control to let this matter end as a simple misunderstanding, but in spite of his background, or more likely because of it, he did not do so. I mouth off to a cop as he responds to a reported crime and i'm going to be charged with disorderly conduct, regardless off my color, or his, or her's. And often, i'm going to get a slap to the head to boot, or a boot to the head. Yes, one of the parties showed their racism here, just not the one you'd expect it from. As Mike b1 Notes "Crowley is not what he 1st appeared".. True, in Mr. Gate's eyes he appeared to be a white guy stomping on the liberties of a black man by entering his house. Too bad, had he only been a black cop instead! I wonder if this will make other white cops slow down a little when responding to the next call, so they dont have to deal with this for the rest of their lives, as the "injured party" goes on the talk show circut and plans classes around it.

[www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000610833355]

RIP boys, you are the best our country has to offer and I wish I could thank you face to face for all your hard work and sacrifices

[Nicholas SAndy]

After reading marcus lutrells book i kind of changed the way i do things. Im never going to moan or complain about anything again. I know thats cheezy but what the hell. I have never been in any situation close to this so I dont really know what to say but Marcus I am real sorry about your team mates they were solid men.

[Andy]

I'm a former medic and a Liberal Idiot that Marcus described in his book, but I believe every word he wrote about the media. We Libs are Americans as well and no matter our views we support the troops 100%. Screw the ROE in the war on terrorism. Let the guys on the ground make the decisions. I'm in awe of them. RIP

[Cameron smit]

It takes a special breed of man to endure what they did and inflict serious casualties at the same time against odds that seemed impossible, they survived for as long as they did purely because of their highly specialized training,bravery,honour and sheer tenacity that that is the hallmark of US Special Forces...these are the men that preserve our way of life, and keep us and our children safe.these silent hero's are of the highest calibre and deserve respect and reverence accordingly

Cameron smit
South Africa

[PFC Corey David Haag]

RIP every man who lays his life down for his country RIP

[Darcell]

This battle is a testament to why no Navy SEAL has ever been captured and why no SEAL has ever been left behind by another SEAL on a mission. They care so much about their country and their teammates that they would gladly lay down their lives.

[Alex Knaub]

Hey, Lieutenant Michael Murphy has doing his job very good! He and his team died as a HERO's!
I respect you guys! Navy for ever!!!
Alex

[Rod Draper]

I began reading and soon became completely consumed by the book The Lone Survivor. These men gave the ultimate sacrafice to their, our country, and I thank God that this great country still produces HEROS like these men. You soon realize the real heros of the United States are not the sports players making millions of dollars, but are service members like these earning a small wage but not asking for much more.
Rodney Draper, U.S. Navy Retired

[Rod Draper]

I began reading and soon became completely consumed by the book The Lone Survivor. These men gave the ultimate sacrafice to their, our country, and I thank God that this great country still produces HEROS like these men. You soon realize the real heros of the United States are not the sports players making millions of dollars, but are service members like these earning a small wage but not asking for much more.
Rodney Draper, U.S. Navy Retired

[Simone]

I'm italian, but I think all country in the world hope to have man like Lieutenant Michael Murphy. And pride for that.

[Ed]

As a canadian, I have great respect and admiration for the men ofthe US Special operation Command and especially for the men of the SEALs. I read the book Lone Survivor by the surviving SEAL Marcus Luttrell and the bravery and unselfishness of LT Murphy's men towards each other is testament to that country's values.

[Dale Moore]

Petty Officer 1st Class Jeffrey Allen Lucas was my childrens cousin. If Jeff were here today he would comment on the number of dead and say that, because one survived,the team effort was worth the cost, and that he was proud to be on the mission.

He is missed by all who knew him.

[Ron Tarburton]

As one of this great country's foremost Historians on the Medal of Honor I must humbly say that all Americans should this day symbolically kneel-remove our hats and say a prayer of Thanksginving for the fact that we are still producing the same kind of great men who gave birth to this country.
Ron Tarburton

First State Medal of Honor
Roundtable

[Mike]

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[Ryder]

You are the Don Rickles of the 'blogg writing' efforts. It is great to hear so many 'truths' without fear of being 'politically incorrect'. Very refreshing. How about you running for president? At least there would be more truth less BS.
Write on!!

[Tim Monroe]

Gary,
Good story and photos about Operation Red Wing. Would have been easy to build support for the mission if main stream media reported stories like that about what is being done on our behalf. Would have been easy to build support if every senator who voted to send troops realized their vote meant every day, job one, what do the troops need and how do I make that happen. Would have been easy if all the spittin and hissin was directed at our enemy instead of the other political party. Anyway, good work.
Tim

[Mike@CopTheTruth]

Thank God that there are men like this serving our country!

[Hap Arnold]

Words fail after reading of men such as Murphy & his comrades-in-arms. They do what most of us cannot even imagine. May God set a special place for them @ His table.