American intelligence officials identified this individual as "OBJECTIVE GINOSA." SEAL Team 6 & Extortion 17 Families Suspect Crash Was Inside Job 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 [9][10], After American intelligence services discovered in 2011 that senior Taliban leader Qari Tahir was possibly in Tangi Valley, Wardak province, Afghanistan, local American forces launched a mission to apprehend or kill him. August 6, 2017 marks the 6 year anniversary of the downing of Extortion 17, a bigger scandal than Benghazi in large part due to the fact that America lost 30 of its military personnel, including 17 Navy SEALs, the largest loss of life in the Afghan war. They were part of the same Army Reserve unit, 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment based in Gardner, Kan. Nichols, with three combat tours of duty, also had plenty of experience flying dangerous missions. Ill try to reply the best I can. Prior to the mission, the deadliest incident was June 2005's Operation . 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. FALLEN ANGEL Call Sign: Extortion 17 | SalemNOW 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. In June 2005, a rocket-propelled grenade connected with the rear transmission of a 160th MH-47E Chinook as it attempted to come to a hover, downing it; all 16 on board were killed. Should the Apaches, or the AC-130 overhead, have fired upon the groups of suspected Taliban that gathered in the village after the raid began? 2017 The Dallas Morning News. What are the odds? The RPG that struck Extortion 17 threw the helicopter into an uncontrollable spin. Extortion 17 sped alone toward the landing zone. The group fired 2-3 RPG rounds from a two-story building from a location some 220 meters south of the helicopter. They reached the site at 04:12 and found no survivors. Photo by Jake Simkin for Coffee or Die Magazine. "[5], Subsequent reports stated that on the night during which the helicopter had been delivering reinforcements to personnel of the 75th Ranger Regiment, another special operations unit engaged in a night raid on a compound to kill or capture a senior Taliban leader. Its almost always a miss.. Courtesy . Another tactic sometimes employed by gunships, according to Glover, is a show of force, in which pilots and crew fire into an empty field or stand of trees just before a transport helicopter prepares to land, using the sound of a gun alone to keep enemy heads down and fingers off triggers. The 30 American Servicemen killed in action (KIA) with the downing of Extortion 17. The theories suggest that Afghan forces leaked information to the Taliban about the mission. At any moment, they could come under rocket attack. [11], By 16:25, all of the remains were taken from the crash site via ground convoy and transported to Combat Outpost Sayyid Abad. I didnt want to die., He remembered the words of his old flight instructor: Never stop flying the aircraft.. The second round struck one of the three aft rotor blades of the helicopter, destroying the aft rotor assembly. So many unsettling details are coalescing with the resurgence of Extortion 17. Regarding the downing of Extortion 17, all of the DEVGRU Operators aboard were members of the Gold Squadron. He would eventually do two tours and become commander of a Chinook unit during his second deployment in 2011. 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. The reality is, every time a helicopter lifts off the ground in a war zone, it might get shot down, Darack said. Humm, to have all the Seal Team 6 members in one place at one time?? There are a lot of bullets out there that say To whom it may concern,says Major Doug Glover, a U.S. Marine F/A-18D weapons and sensors operator who was a senior watch officer for the Marine air operations center in southern Afghanistan. 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. Buy images; Sell images; (Photo Credit: Senior Airman Anthony Nin Leclerec / U.S. Air Force / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain) There were a total of 38 individuals onboard Extortion 17. Oct 26, 2016 - Explore Concerned Citizen's board "EXTORTION 17", followed by 829 people on Pinterest. That June, the U.S. military launched Operation Hammer Down to drive out insurgents entrenched in remote strongholds of eastern Afghanistan. Downing of Extortion 17: The Single Deadliest Incident of the US War in [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. At 02:15, one group of three Taliban fighters took a position in a stand of trees; the remaining six or seven men entered a building located some 2km (1.2mi) from the target compound. Its like taking a paper towel roll, cutting it in half and strapping it to your eye, Lee said. The worst of the wounded was one of Lees crew members, who suffered what was later diagnosed as a severe traumatic brain injury. All of them were men of courage, integrity, and honor. In 2006, he was called into Afghanistan, where he turned 25. Extortion 17: What really happened on America's deadliest day in Night Stalker pilots and crew rigorously train for nighttime raids, like the one in Juy Zarin. Are all DEVGRUs saved in a sperm bank? For helicopter crews in Afghanistan, the most dangerous times are landing and taking off. Lightboxes. Should the Apache pilots have fired into the stand of trees after the two fighters ducked out of sight? Extortion 16 flew empty. Justin Buddy Lee will never forget that night six years ago. The aircraft jerked. August 6, 2022 marks 11 years since Extortion 17. On this day 11 years ago, 30 American military servicemen and a U.S. military dog were killed when a CH-47 Chinook helicoptercall sign Extortion 17was shot down in Afghanistan. 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. PDF AFGHANISTAN: HONORING THE HEROES OF EXTORTION 17 - GovInfo Will this ever be exposed! Available for both RF and RM licensing. "The downing of Extortion 17 was a catastrophic and unprecedented tragedy for our nation," Reid testified. 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. 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. Spec Ops Magazine 2023 All Rights Reserved. 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. Six weeks later, at around 10:40 p.m., an assault team of Army Rangers and Afghan special operations forces were dropped into an LZ on a mission to capture or kill a Taliban commander named Qari Tahir, who had been responsible for a series of attacks and ambushes in the Tangi Valley, not far from Shank. 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. The vast majority miss. He finished his contract with the Army shortly afterward, and that September enrolled in Southern Methodist Universitys Dedman School of Law. 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 workhorse in Army aviation, the tandem rotor, heavy-lift Chinook helicopter is used for carrying troops, equipment, supplies and even the mail. 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. Commanders frequently request CH-47 Chinooks to insert troops. On August 6th, 2011, the helicopter was fired upon and shot down by a previously undetected group of Taliban fighters. Having studied and directly observed the counter-insurgency campaign in Afghanistan, Ive watched commanders and individual American troops consistently lean far to the side of restraint to encourage Afghans to side with American interests long after U.S. forces have left. Extortion 17: Bodies of the 22 slain SEAL Team 6 members cremated All rights reserved. Alexander J. Bennett, 24, of Tacoma, Wash. 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. Ranger assault helicopters had already engaged the enemy and killed six of eight Taliban fighters, causing the other two to retreat. [11] Seventeen U.S. Navy SEALs remained in reserve at the forward operating base. It would never return. U.S. Army Helicopter Extortion 17 Shot Down - YouTube So much of the war is fought in areas where these helicopters have to fly at high altitudes, where the thin air can strain the performance of the engines and rotor blades, said Ed Darack, author of the recently published book, The Final Mission of Extortion 17: Special Ops, Helicopter Support, SEAL Team Six and the Deadliest Day of the U.S. War in Afghanistan. This would not be the first time that an Afghan military member has been an undercover Taliban Terrorist and shot our US Military! Sat 6 Aug 2011 19.08 EDT. Rest in peace, gentlemen; you will not be forgotten. EXTORTION 17 COVER-UP OF SEAL TEAM SIX SHOOT-DOWN | BWCentral Extortion 17 Is A Bigger Scandal and Betrayal Than Benghazi Six weeks into his deployment, Lee experienced his worst day as a helicopter pilot to that point. In The Final Mission of Extortion 17, Ed Darack debunks this theory and others and uncovers the truth behind this mysterious tragedy. 2 U.S. Army personnel from the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment, part of the Colorado Army National Guard, PO1 John Douangdara & Navy SEAL Dog Bart, Of the 22 NSW members killed, 17 were SEALs, and five were direct support personnel, according to the source in the NSW community. 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. Troops", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2011_Afghanistan_Boeing_Chinook_shootdown&oldid=1142506992, 2 U.S. Navy SEALs from Naval Special Warfare Group 1, 4 U.S. In The Final Flight of Extortion 17, Ed Darack debunks this theory and others and uncovers the truth behind this mysterious tragedy. [9][11], Almost an hour later (01:50), the aviation brigade commander approved a new landing zone for infiltration of the SEAL team. He taught helicopter pilots how to fly in high altitudes at an aviation training site in Colorado. 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. There is a lot of controversy and discussion regarding the operators from the Gold Squadron who died abroad. 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. Sgt. LZ is ice, transmitted one of the Rangers on the ground, indicating the landing zone was free of enemy activity. [39], During the same Pentagon news conference in which he announced that the F-16 airstrike had incapacitated "less than 10" of the insurgents involved, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) commander in Afghanistan John R. Allen said that the military investigation would also review whether small-arms fire or other causes might have contributed to the downing. According to officials, the team included 17 SEALs, five Navy special operations troops who support the SEALs, three Air Force airmen, a five-member Army air crew and a military dog, along with. There remained many mysteries about the Extortion 17 shoot down. Some 30 seconds later, one of the AH-64 Apache helicopters in the area reported: Fallen Angel.. . In light of that raids success, the shootdown of Extortion 17 incited a flurry of conspiracy theories: The Taliban were tipped off; it was a trap; it was retribution for the killing. The mission was flown by conventional pilots flying unmodified CH-47Ds. Deadliest Day in Spec Ops History: The Extortion-17 Chinook Crash Extortion 17 and 16 werent MH-47s and their crews were not Night Stalkers. 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. August 6, 2017 marks six years since 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. Editors note: This story originally appeared in October 2017. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Geneva G. Brier/Released) As they made their approach, there was a line of thunderstorms nearby. ], Four years after the downing of Extortion 17, there were many theories about a possible government coverup. Extortion17 hi-res stock photography and images - Alamy 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. Did Extortion 17 cover-up sink Rep. Chaffetz? - WND Located in a remote and dangerous province in eastern Afghanistan, the base was the target of near-constant rocket attacks from Taliban insurgents. The group probably contained the commander and a few of his bodyguards, while the remaining Taliban fighters offered resistance in an effort to buy the group enough time to escape. [34] Kevin Sieff and Greg Jaffe of The Washington Post reported that U.S. officials confirmed the deaths, including 22 SEALs. We continue our work at the Museum so that theirservice and sacrifice will never be forgotten. In March 2002, two MH-47s were downed by machine gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire while close to ground level. The shootdown was the single, deadliest loss of U.S. forces in the war. Two investigations of the incident proved inconclusive. In order to prevent this, American forces called in for support. Mission commanders, believing that Tahir was likely among one of the groups, deployed an Immediate Reaction Force (IRF) to interdict them while the Rangers held the compound. Lee and his friend Bryan Nichols flew their Chinook into battle several times the first night, dropping off troops at a landing zone (LZ) almost 10,000 feet above sea level. She had just given birth to their first child. 1h 33m "A U.S. Army helicopter carrying 30 Americans, most members of the elite Navy SEAL Team 6 is shot down in Afghanistan. While Benghazi resulted in four American deaths, Extortion 17 resulted in 38 deaths, including nearly two dozen Navy SEALs. When the Boeing CH-47D Chinook helicopter was hit, all 38 onboard were instantly killed. Lees second deployment started in May of 2011. 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. The co-pilot, Bryan Nichols, was one of Lees closest friends in the Chinook company. Extortion 17 BRIAN BILL FOUNDATION 31 MILE RUCK FOR THE 31 HEROES OF EXTORTION 17 IN WASHINGTON, DC AUGUST 3, 2019 On 6 August 2011, a U.S. Boeing CH-47 Chinook military helicopter was shot down while transporting a quick reaction force attempting to reinforce an engaged unit of Army Rangers in Wardak province, west of Kabul, Afghanistan.

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