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John Chapman Died Alone On A Mountaintop Fighting Al Qaeda. Now He’s Getting The Medal Of Honor
Task & Purpose ^ | April 20, 2018 | Paul Szoldra

Posted on 04/21/2018 5:59:02 AM PDT by Twotone

It was March 4, 2002. American special operations forces were fighting to establish observation posts high above Afghanistan’s Shah-i-Kot Valley, as conventional troops continued their push through the valley floor below.

One of those men, Air Force Technical Sgt. John Chapman, was alone in the pitch-black, wounded and slowly regaining his consciousness in the thigh-deep snow of a 10,469-foot peak known as Takur Ghar, as scores of Al Qaeda fighters closed in.

The operators were due to lift-off from their Gardez base around midnight and quietly land near the base of the peak before climbing to the top. But maintenance delays and pressure from senior officers forced Senior Chief Petty Officer Britt Slabinski, the team’s leader, to nix the safer approach, instead opting to “land the x” of the peak at around 3 a.m.

It would prove a gross miscalculation in retrospect.

Chapman, an Air Force combat controller, and six members of Navy SEAL Team 6 — callsign Mako 30 — were to helicopter-insert high above the valley so they could direct air strikes and provide intelligence for conventional troops below, who were attempting to flush out an estimated 200 to 300 lightly-armed Al Qaeda fighters, just five months after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.

For his actions earlier in the battle and for his incredible bravery on that peak, according to sources familiar with the matter, Chapman will be posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor later this year.

And “Chappy” — as he was known by his teammates — will be the first Air Force service-member to receive the nation’s highest award for valor since the Vietnam War.

(Excerpt) Read more at taskandpurpose.com ...


TOPICS: History; Military/Veterans
KEYWORDS: afghanistan; airforce; airmen; fallen; heroes; johnchapman; medalofhonor; oef; takurghar; usaf; usag
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1 posted on 04/21/2018 5:59:02 AM PDT by Twotone
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To: Twotone; archy; kunsanhistorian; xzins; 2ndDivisionVet; SandRat; zot; HarleyLady27; ...

Announcement of new Medal of Honor to be awarded to USAF TSGT John Chapman who was killed in action March 4, 2002, while controlling air support to US forces in Afghainistan.


2 posted on 04/21/2018 6:13:59 AM PDT by GreyFriar (Spearhead - 3rd Armored Division 75-78 & 83-87)
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To: Twotone

Condolences and congratulations to his family. America honors the sacrifice of your Airman and we will never forget his bravery and loyalty!


3 posted on 04/21/2018 6:17:20 AM PDT by Midwesterner53
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To: Twotone

A well-deserved honor for an American hero.


4 posted on 04/21/2018 6:25:10 AM PDT by Ciexyz (I have one issue and it's my economic well-being.)
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To: Twotone

Good!

It’s about time! I’ve been aware of his actions since he died and this is a long time coming.

As a retired Air Force SMSgt, the joke about airmen rarely facing any danger but a paper cut is often true, although we still have an obligation to fight if ordered to do so. However, our skills and positions mean we’re just not used that way, as a highly advanced and technically powerful air force needs those skills to maintain it’s edge.

Guys like TSgt Chapman and other Air Force combat controllers are really a step above!


5 posted on 04/21/2018 6:26:33 AM PDT by Alas Babylon! (If white privilege is real, why do we have millions of poor white people?)
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To: Twotone
Honor where honor is due! He has already reported to senior command but the Medal is how WE can give honor to his family, friends and peers. The Medal is how these heroes are kept alive in memory, to serve as reminders of the ultimate sacrifice that may be demanded and be paid.

Listen and watch this video and remember all of our fallen brothers and sisters! "Mansions of the Lord" performed by the Cadet Glee Club of West Point ( a caveat here, the title should be "the USMA Cadet Glee Club at West Point"! )

6 posted on 04/21/2018 6:27:59 AM PDT by SES1066 (Happiness is a depressed Washington, DC housing market!)
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To: Alas Babylon!

Good for TSgt Chapman and for the Air Force. The USAF took advantage of the DoD wide review of combat awards to justify the upgrade of TSgt Chapman’s award of the Air Force Cross. I think that his case met the threshold.

The nature of modern day air way and the technological superiority of the USAF translates into a dearth of traditional heroic actions among airmen. Most of combat awards to airmen have gone to those operating in a ground role and to enlisted airmen. Officers dominate the air combat role, but it is the enlisted joes carrying the fight for the Air Force based on their boots on the ground with their Special Operations, Army, and coalition partners. Chapman, not Grabeski, represents the modern Air Force combat heros.


7 posted on 04/21/2018 7:12:47 AM PDT by centurion316 (Back from exile from 4/2016 until 4/2018)
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To: Twotone

Hand Salute.

Prayers up!


8 posted on 04/21/2018 7:44:46 AM PDT by Delta 21 (Build The Wall !! Jail The Cankle !!)
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To: Alas Babylon!
As a retired Air Force SMSgt, the joke about airmen rarely facing any danger..

Gets old....

9 posted on 04/21/2018 7:47:44 AM PDT by TomServo
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To: Twotone

Salute.

5.56mm


10 posted on 04/21/2018 8:06:29 AM PDT by M Kehoe (THIS SPACE FOR RENT)
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To: TomServo

“Gets old.... “

And very much untrue. The first and last boots on the ground are often USAF.


11 posted on 04/21/2018 8:09:16 AM PDT by CodeToad (The Democrats haven't been this pissed off since the Republicans took their slaves away.)
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To: CodeToad

Yup.


12 posted on 04/21/2018 8:11:19 AM PDT by TomServo
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To: Alas Babylon!
As a retired Air Force SMSgt, the joke about airmen rarely facing any danger but a paper cut is often true, although we still have an obligation to fight if ordered to do so.

As a retired, prior enlisted, officer I do laugh at the "chair force" jokes, but we have some of the biggest bad-asses out there. The PJ's and CCT's have always been some of the best, if not the best, in the entire US military.

I have had several good friends who were both and they were some of the greatest war fighters I have ever met, and I have been around thousands from every branch of Service.

13 posted on 04/21/2018 8:16:35 AM PDT by OldMissileer (Atlas, Titan, Minuteman, PK. Winners of the Cold War)
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To: ransomnote; Whenifhow; null and void; aragorn; EnigmaticAnomaly; kalee; Kale; 2ndDivisionVet; ...

a great honor.


14 posted on 04/21/2018 8:34:43 AM PDT by bitt (We do not need the electric chair - we need electric bleachers!)
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To: Twotone

bump


15 posted on 04/21/2018 8:44:09 AM PDT by Dante3
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To: Twotone

Thank you for your service doesn’t rise to the level of my gratitude for Sgt. Chapman.


16 posted on 04/21/2018 8:54:42 AM PDT by jch10 (Media: prostitutes for the Democrat Party.)
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To: GreyFriar

Thanks for the ping. May he rest in peace.


17 posted on 04/21/2018 9:01:44 AM PDT by zot
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To: Twotone
I spent 15 months in Kandahar, Afghanistan, (04-05) and I distinctly remember seeing John Chapman's name applied in memoriam to the face of a nondescript adobe building near the airfield. I didn't know him personally, but I knew what the act of hand scrolling a name upon a building mean't.

Another 25 months in Iraq, and I encountered several more of these impromptu acknowledgements of honor by brothers in arms, to a precious life sacrificed on the battlefield.


18 posted on 04/21/2018 9:06:50 AM PDT by freepersup (A freeper behind every blade of grass. / Count your blessings!)
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To: freepersup

https://amp.businessinsider.com/images/5ada78fd19ee8649008b46f4-960-480.jpg


19 posted on 04/21/2018 9:09:49 AM PDT by freepersup (A freeper behind every blade of grass. / Count your blessings!)
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To: Twotone

Source: http://www.connecticutmag.com/the-connecticut-story/peak-of-courage-connecticut-native-john-chapman-could-be-awarded/article_1b725f72-c309-11e6-b460-1f0c1fb23e21.html

20 posted on 04/21/2018 9:12:09 AM PDT by freepersup (A freeper behind every blade of grass. / Count your blessings!)
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