As two U.S. Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, an Air Force AC-130 gunship, and a small fleet of unmanned surveillance aircraft orbited overhead, a platoon of the 75th Ranger Regiment and members of an Afghan special operations unit stormed down the rear ramps of the Chinooks and into the night. To lose even one precious life is too many, and the United States lost 38 soldiers that day. We were told at that time we were the first unit to make it through a rotation without having anyone killed.. Ryan Last. As Extortion 17 moved into final approach of the target area at 0238 local time, the Rangers on the ground watched in horror as it took a direct hit from an RPG (rocket-propelled grenade). Air & Space/Smithsonian contributing editor Ed Darack is the author of The Warriors of Anbar; War Moments; The Final Mission of Extortion 17; Victory Point; and three other books. According to one Army report, in the three months prior to the Juy Zarin raid, as many as 17 RPGs were fired at helicopters over Wardak and Logar provinces, a relatively small part of the country. A hearing was set to get answers to questions surrounding the high-profile shoot-down of an American helicopter in Afghanistan and how the remains of the fallen service members were handled. So the whole team went in one Chinook helicopter Extortion 17. [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. Flying to the Tangi Valley for the second time, Extortion 17 and 16 took a different route, approaching from the northwest instead of the south. Directors Karl Horstmann Stephen Spivey Writer Stephen Spivey Stars Sean Hannity Raj Kala No evidence has emerged to support any of these claims. I find it extremely suspicious that, after the alleged killing of Osama Bin Laden, there was a very suspicious burial at sea for a covered corpse that was alleged to be Bin Laden. These are the words of Billy Vaughn. For helicopter crews in Afghanistan, the most dangerous times are landing and taking off. Ninty-six days after the death of Osama bin Laden by SEAL Team Six, an old Vietnam era Army Reserve helicopter, call sign "Extortion 17," was shot down in the Wardak Province, Tangi River Valley, Afghanistan on Aug 6, 2011. Ranger assault helicopters had already engaged the enemy and killed six of eight Taliban fighters, causing the other two to retreat. The mission was flown by conventional pilots flying unmodified CH-47Ds. This was preventable only if they just had not taken off that night, Lee said. [9][10][11] After a 20-minute flight (around 23:00), the two Chinook helicopters landed near the compound ostensibly containing Tahir, offloaded the Ranger platoon and returned to base. I didnt want to die., He remembered the words of his old flight instructor: Never stop flying the aircraft.. Our area of operation was the entire country of Iraq, and every mission was at night, says David Pat Gates, a pilot with Carters unit , the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment (2-135th), a Colorado Army National Guard unit based in Aurora, Colorado. The IRF also included two SEALs from another team, five Navy special operations support personnel, three Air Force special tactics airmen, seven Afghan National Army commandos, a translator, and a combat assault dog. Through the goggles, the landing zone shone brilliantly. Lees second deployment started in May of 2011. He is the founder of Darack Research, a company that innovates unmanned systems, which grew out of his July 2014 Air & Space article Build Your Own Drone. Find the perfect extortion17 stock photo, image, vector, illustration or 360 image. Senior Chief Robert James Reeves was one of those Americans. For example, on 8 June 2011 another Chinook helicopter was engaged from five to six locations (i.e., points of origin) with 14 rocket-propelled grenades, forcing the crew to abort their mission. 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. [26], The U.S. military helicopter carrying special operations forces to a night-raid in the Tangi Valley of Wardak Province, was most likely brought down by a rocket-propelled grenade, according to military officials. On this night, Aug. 6, 2011, something went terribly wrong. So if there was a added black box installed on this Aircraft there should be a maintenance record? 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. A body went into the ocean, but Ill bet it wasnt Bin Ladens. LZ is ice, transmitted one of the Rangers on the ground, indicating the landing zone was free of enemy activity. 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. With a keen understanding of the propaganda value of downing Coalition helicopters, the Taliban single them out as targets. May God give them the strength to carry on without them. The tempo of the missions did not decrease. Nothing tests the capabilities of a young helicopter pilot like flying in the extreme conditions of Afghanistan. But why? ", "Taliban laid trap for Chinook: official", "Honor Roll: Remembering the 30 U.S. As for himself, he speaks out about Extortion 17 because he wants to remember the men on that mission. U.S. Special Operations Command possesses its own specialized ChinooksMH-47sflown by the ultra-secretive 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, the Night Stalkers. The MH-47s modifications include inflight refueling probes, additional and upgraded sensors, more powerful engines, and more powerful defensive weapons than their conventional counterparts. John W. Brown, 33, of Tallahassee, Florida, Staff Sgt. But U.S. forces didnt know about every fighter during the raid, and they lost track of at least twoone of whom fired the deadly shot. Oct 26, 2016 - Explore Concerned Citizen's board "EXTORTION 17", followed by 829 people on Pinterest. The Chinook helicopter they were aboard was shot down by . Naval Special Warfare Development Groups (DEVGRU) Gold Squadron, No Easy Day (detailing his participation in Operation Neptune Spear), Mark Owen, congressional oversight committee held a hearing on February 27, 2014, 7 Afghan National Army Commandos, part of the Afghan National Army. 2017 The Dallas Morning News. 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. 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. Around 2:40 a.m., an Apache pilot flying in support came on the radio and shouted: Fallen Angel. He was also an instructor at the High Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site (see Triple Threat: High, Hot, and Heavy, Aug. 2014), where many U.S. and foreign helicopter pilots train for mountainous and high-altitude flying, often before deployment to Afghanistan. Tangi valley remained under Taliban control until April 2013, when more than 1,000 Afghan security forces personnel launched an offensive in an effort to clear the area of Taliban fighters. The helicopter made its last radio transmission stating that it was one minute away from the landing zone, then descended to an altitude of 100150ft (3046m) and slowed to a speed of 50kn (58mph; 93km/h) as it approached the landing zone. Hs unit called itself Extortion Company. One of his Chinooks, flying under the call sign Extortion 17 (one-seven), was tasked with the special operations mission the night of Aug. 6. 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. It was a hard landing, but it would have been worse if they had landed tail first. Theres no precedent for this. Humm, to have all the Seal Team 6 members in one place at one time?? 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. The United States military continually works to improve protection for transport helicopters and their occupants, according to Glover and Brady. About a dozen of the 33 troops in the back of the helicopter suffered broken bones, heavy bruises and scrapes. [11][12], As the Rangers approached the target compound, ISR aircraft observed several people leaving the compound. AC-130 gunships orbiting overhead directed two AH-64 Apache attack helicopters to fire on and kill five enemy fighters. But Tahir and a group of his fighters escaped. When the auto-complete results are available, use the up and down arrows to review and Enter to select. 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 was too busy. It is also the most disastrous incident in the. 2023 Smithsonian Magazine It also became one of the most devastating death tolls of the U.S. Special Operations Forces. Ill try to reply the best I can. Following a scorched earth tactic may have killed the two shootersand possibly a greater number of innocentsprior to Extortion 17s return that night, but counterinsurgency doctrine dictates that such tactics lead to potentially far worse long-term consequences. We didnt do fast-rope inserts, building insertions, or anything like that. Subsequent to their Iraq deployment, the unit flew the SEALs of Team 6 on practice raids around Fort Carson, Colorado, and during nighttime urban training in Denver, further cementing the 2-135ths reputation with special operations units. Their target: an Afghan named Qari Tahir and his group of fighters. The co-pilot, Bryan Nichols, was one of Lees closest friends in the Chinook company. The crash is referred to as Extortion 17 by the callsign of the CH-47 Chinook helicopter involved in the crash. At the flight controls were David R. Carter of the Colorado Army National Guard and copilot Bryan J. Nichols, a Kansas-based Army reservist. The first round sailed past the helicopter. [1][2][3][4], The resulting crash killed all 38 people on board including 17 US Navy SEALs, two United States Air Force Pararescue, one United States Air Force Combat Control Team member, one pilot and two crewmen of the United States Army Reserve, one pilot and one crewman of the United States Army National Guard, seven members of the Afghan National Security Forces, and one Afghan interpreter. The RPG that struck Extortion 17 threw the helicopter into an uncontrollable spin. Two investigations of the incident proved inconclusive. [42], In 2017, Air Force captain Joni Marquez, the firing officer on an AC-130 gunship that had accompanied Extortion 17 on the final flight, made a similar claim. A junior, he was ready to fight, but the war would be over, he figured, before he even got out of college. On such missions, the Chinook pilots nearly always fly at night, wearing night vision goggles, or NVGs. The helicopter carrying the SEALs proceeded to the landing zone alone, without external lighting. Ed Darack March 2015 The Chinook's cargo capacity, speed,. In March 2002, two MH-47s were downed by machine gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire while close to ground level. It requires the highest level of skills from the pilots because they are some of the most dangerous operations.. There are more operations than can be supported by the 160th at any given time, says Major Matthew Brady, a former 160th pilot and company commander. 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. Lee remained in Afghanistan flying combat missions for another eight months before returning home in the spring of 2012. There are more operations than can be supported by the 160th at any given time," says Major Matthew Brady, a former 160th pilot and company commander. That's the only route, so they took positions on either side of the valley on mountains and as the helicopter approached, they attacked it with rockets and other modern weapons. Some news stories reported that investigators couldnt find the helicopters black box, referring to the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder. 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. [11], By 16:25, all of the remains were taken from the crash site via ground convoy and transported to Combat Outpost Sayyid Abad. The Taliban shot at the Chinooks all the time with RPGs and rifles, Darack said. [36][37], After the shootdown of Extortion 17, the insurgent responsible used a two-way radio to brag to others about the act. BUT the Chief Command and those who elected him will pay for there failure to seek Yahwahs guidance before going to war or to vote for a new president! All of them were men of courage, integrity, and honor. Air Force C-17 Crashes Just After Takeoff in Alaska | Dangerous Aerobatics (With Real Video) TheFlightChannel 2.1M views 1 year ago Feature History - Chinese Civil War Feature History 1.9M views. He presents the Final Flight of EXTORTION 17 (spoken one seven and seventeen), like a Defense Attorney or an investigator. Restrained by strict rules of engagement in force at the time, the helicopter crews could not have fired without a strong indication of hostile intent. Less than five seconds after the RPG round hit, the helicopter spun uncontrollably, plummeting into a dry creek bed and erupting in a ball of fire that killed all on board. Touch device users can explore by touch or with swipe . Intelligence had revealed Tahir to be the senior Taliban chief of the Tangi Valley region, with probable ties to upper-echelon Taliban leadership in Pakistan. He would eventually do two tours and become commander of a Chinook unit during his second deployment in 2011. [1][5][6][7][8] At 30 American military personnel killed, the shootdown of Extortion 17 represents the greatest single-incident loss of American lives in Operation Enduring Freedom Afghanistan, surpassing the 16 lost in the downing of Turbine 33, a 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) MH-47 helicopter, during Operation Red Wings on 28 June 2005.[2]. Just as ridiculous as saying [President George W.] Bush was responsible for 9/11, Lee said. The pilots and crew of Extortion 17, however, had ideal experience and abilities for the mission that night. In fact, the conflict was heating up. [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. "All of this raises the distinct possibility of a cover-up as to . See more ideas about extortion, navy seals, seal team 6. An Afghan official, speaking anonymously a few days after the attack, speculated that the Taliban had laid a trap, that they had purposely put out false information about a meeting involving the Taliban commander. On this day 11 years ago, 30 American military servicemen and a U.S. military dog were killed when a CH-47 Chinook helicopter-call sign Extortion 17-was shot down in Afghanistan. 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 . Sgt. All three airmen were assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, Pope Field, North Carolina. LOL, Ray Williams 509th RRCUV (Army Security Agency) Feb68-Apr71. 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. At 2:36 a.m., Extortion 17 requested an infrared spotlight, visible only through night vision goggles, to illuminate the landing zone. 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. On Aug. 6, 2011, insurgent forces in Afghanistan shot down an American aircraft. Of those 38 lost, 22 were members of Navy SEAL Team 6, the Naval Special Warfare unit responsible for the killing of notorious 9/11 mastermind Osama Fallen Angel.. Not feelin it! Also if an Afghan soldier member of this team opened fire on this seal team then way was all the bodies Cremated and evidence destroyed?? It wasnt preventable. Captain Marquez claims that had the AC-130 been allowed to fire on the remaining enemy insurgents, Extortion 17 would not have been shot down. | READ MORE. Photo: We pay Tribute Chief Petty Officer Nicholas H. Null Operation Extortion 17 August 6, 2011 You may leave a condolence for his family on our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/L2lB37qizaI Comebacks Photo Photo: We pay Tribute to Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Stephen M. Mills Operation Extortion 17 August 6, 2011 Battalion Regiment Warrant Officer The helicopter fell from the sky, killing all 38 on board. Extortion 17 sped alone toward the landing zone. The mission had begun about four hours prior to the shootdown, when the two helicopters touched down side by side in Juy Zarin, a village in the bare rock-walled Tangi Valley of Wardak Province. The suspicious August 6th, 2011, CH47-D Chinook helicopter crash in Wardak Province, Afghanistan which claimed the lives of 38 American military personnel.Of those 38 lost, 22 were members of Navy SEAL Team 6, the Naval Special Warfare unit responsible for the killing of notorious 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden . The men who serve in the American military are the finest! During the Ranger insertion earlier that night, the CH-47D had approached from the south; this time, it approached from the northwest. His father Billy Vaughn recounted Thursday a phone call from his son following the White House . Here, in silence, are the names and photographs of all 30 men. "Before Benghazi there was Extortion 17.. Saturday August 6 th 2011 was a day that changed the lives of my family forever. You never want to use the same landing zone twice, Darack said. Campbell was one of 30. The reality is, every time a helicopter lifts off the ground in a war zone, it might get shot down, Darack said. Today. The crash is referred to as Extortion 17 by the callsign of the CH-47 Chinook helicopter involved in the crash. Seven Afghan National Army commandos and one Afghan civilian interpreter were also killed in the crash. Privacy Statement 3 U.S. Army Reserve personnel from the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment. The helicopter, call sign Extortion 17, was on a mission to reinforce American and coalition special operations troops. The hardest LZ Id ever been into, Lee said. In March 2009, the U.S. 10th Mountain Division established a base in Tangi Valley after increased Taliban activity in the area. Should the Apache pilots have fired into the stand of trees after the two fighters ducked out of sight? [29], Other reports alleged that the Taliban had laid an elaborate trap for American special-operations forces, luring them in with false information. When the shock subsided, questions arose and persisted. Director Franois Garcia Writer Sandeep Panesar Stars Robert O'Neill (archive footage) Patricia Economo Enrique Garcia Im a 25 year veteran involved in many support missions and I find this downing of Ext 17 very suspect indeed! 1h 33m "A U.S. Army helicopter carrying 30 Americans, most members of the elite Navy SEAL Team 6 is shot down in Afghanistan. At 23:30, one of the Apache support helicopters engaged in a brief skirmish with a different group of eight Taliban fighters 400m (440yd) north of the compound, killing six. On the anniversary of the Extortion 17 tragedy, we remember the heroic men who were felled rushing into battle, as they had done hundreds of times . As he did, he felt the craft leveling off. Buy images; Sell images; [40], In October 2011, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that an investigation following the shootdown concluded "that all operational decisions, linked to the incident, were deemed tactically sound." The team boarded Extortion 17 with Dave Carter and Bryan Nichols at the controls. The 30 American Servicemen killed in action (KIA) with the downing of Extortion 17. There remained many mysteries about the Extortion 17 shoot down. All rights reserved. Available for both RF and RM licensing. To reach the crash site, one must wind slowly through the ancient, narrow streets of the villages of Logar to reach the Tangi Valley in Wardak. Cookie Settings, 5,000-Year-Old Tavern With Food Still Inside Discovered in Iraq, Archaeologists Discover Wooden Spikes Described by Julius Caesar, The Surprisingly Scientific Roots of Monkey Bars, Kids Start Forgetting Early Childhood Around Age 7, Artificial Sweetener Tied to Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke, Study Finds. "One. All topics Extortion 17 Documentary Soon after US Navy Cryptologist Michael Strange and the elite SEAL Team 6 capture and kill Bin Laden, they are deployed to Afghanistan, where their Chinook is shot down. In April 2011, American forces turned over control of Combat Outpost Tangi to Afghan government forces. At that moment, Extortion 17 slowed to 58 mph, at no more than 150 feet, approaching a spot framed by trees and mud-brick huts, and "sparkled" by the infrared designator on an AC-130 gunship. It means being informed. The 30 American deaths represent the greatest loss of U.S. military lives in a single incident in the decade-long war in Afghanistan that began in 2001. "[30], On 12 August 2011, Jim Lehrer of the PBS NewsHour announced that he would report the Honor Roll at the end of the program with names and photographs of all 30 men. 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. "It's a math problem. She had just given birth to their first child. 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. Warnings from her crew to turn the Chinook back or cancel their mission went unheeded. 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. The following was extracted from The Navy Times: If one is to believe the account of Matt Bissonnette, the only possibility of a participant of the bin Laden raid perishing on Extortion 17 is if the one SEAL specifically noted not to be a member of Red Squadron was a member of Gold Squadron and a passenger aboard the ill-fated Chinook. The Chinook is often used to assist in disaster relief, delivering food and water after earthquakes and floods. Call Sign Extortion 17: The Shoot-Down of SEAL Team Six is a 2015 non-fiction expose, written by best-selling author and former U.S. Navy JAG Officer Don Brown, about the 2011 Chinook shootdown in Afghanistan of a United States Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopter. Night Stalker pilots and crew rigorously train for nighttime raids, like the one in Juy Zarin. The following was transcribed from the above video press conference. Were asking people to do incredible things. Capable of loitering overhead for hours undetected, small fleets of unmanned craft passed imagery to mission planners before and during the raid at Juy Zarin, allowing them to recognize individual fighters, learn their habits, pinpoint where they slept, and identify the types of weapons they carried. Missions like this one to insert or remove an assault force are the military equivalent of a perfect 10 in the Olympics equal parts skill, experience and daring. American, French and Afghan National Police forces carried out a three-day sweep of the area, and the area was then deemed secure. Also very suspicious that the only member of Seal Team Six that is still alive and in the public sphere happened to be the guy that killed Bin Laden?? 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,. [7][20][21], Fifteen of the Navy SEALs that were killed were members of the Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU),[5][22][20] while the other two Navy SEALs were from an unidentified West Coast-based unit.

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