F-16 pilot calls US airman’s Iran rescue a ‘miracle’
Military experts, including F-16 fighter jet pilot Lt Col Dan Rooney, discuss the daring multi-faceted operation to rescue a US Airman from Iran. The F-15E weapons systems officer evaded Iranian forces for 48 hours after ejecting, prompting a complex search and rescue. President Trump hailed the mission as the ‘most complex search & rescue operation in U.S. history,’ highlighting the precision and bravery of US military units.
Former Army Ranger James Lechner shined a light on the brutal Battle of Mogadishu.
The Battle of Mogadishu (commonly known as Black Hawk Down) was a brutal fight in Somalia that started on October 3, 1993 and carried into the next day.
A small group of Army Rangers, Delta Force operators, 24th STS members and a few SEAL Team 6 commandos were sent to Somalia to stop a genocide being carried out.
What started as a capture and extraction mission turned into hell on Earth after multiple helicopters were hit by Somalia fighters.
MOGADISHU, SOMALIA: A group of U.S. army Rangers sit in the door of a U.S. Black Hawk helicopter at Mogadishu airport August 28, 1993. A number of U.S. rangers landed here August 27. ((Photo credit should read ALEXANDER JOE/AFP via Getty Images))
Army Ranger describes being shot in the Battle of Mogadishu.
There have been a lot of stories that have come out about the battle since 1993, including a hit movie starring Josh Hartnett.
Lechner was a member of the 75th Rangers in Somalia and suffered a gruesome gunshot wound to his tibia.
The details sound horrifying.
MOGADISHU, SOMALIA: Three homeward bound U.S. Army Rangers carry their bags and M-16 rifles toward a military transport plane at Mogadishu International airport October 21, 1993 for the withdrawal from Somalia. ((Photo credit: HOCINE ZAOURAR/AFP via Getty Images))
“Took an AK-47 round right below the knee. Blew out my tibia, and as you know, when bone gets hit, it becomes shrapnel. So that shredded my leg. The bullet went down, came out above my ankle. I had a grapefruit sized hole in the front of my leg and the bullet had shredded the whole left side,” Lechner explained in a recent interview with Shawn Ryan.
He continued, “One of the Delta [Force] medics…came running out of the building, and now there’s firing bullets just cracking down the street continually. Came through that fire, grabbed me by my vest, dragged me inside the building that they had fortified. It became the casualty collection point. He gets me in there. Lots of blood. Hit two arteries. So, I had arterial bleeding and blood was just extremely profuse going on.”
Lechner said the scene was so intense that the blood on the floor was “two inches deep.”
You can watch his full comments in the video below starting around 1:39:00, and let me know your thoughts at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.
Ultimately, 18 Americans were killed in the Battle of Mogadishu and dozens more were wounded. Delta Force snipers Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart both earned the Medal of Honor for inserting into Mike Durant’s crash site and fighting to the bitter and bloody end.
While the battle was horrific, it’s also worth noting there isn’t a single other military on the planet that could have been put in that situation and come out the way it did.
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It was a testament to American exceptionalism and refusal to quit, despite a city being cut loose against a very small fighting force.
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175309 10: The wreckage of an American helicopter sits October 14, 1993 in Mogadishu, Somalia. This Blackhawk helicopter, which was used to root out ammo caches, was subsequently shot down by Somali warlords. ((Photo by Scott Peterson/Liaison via Getty Images))
What do you think about the Battle of Mogadishu? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.
