LTC Erik Kurilla (front right), the moment the bullets strike.(2nd LT front-left; radioman near-left; "AH" the interpreter is near-right.)
Posted on 08/25/2005 10:35:17 AM PDT by saquin
[...]
About fifteen seconds later our ramp dropped. We ran into combat.
Folks who haven't done much urban fighting might take issue with the wild chases, and they might say that people should always "stack up" and do things this or that way, but men in Delta Force, SEALs and the like, all know that when chasing wild men into the labyrinth, soldiers enter the land of confusion. If soldiers don't go fast, the bad guys simply get away. Just a few minutes ago, these three guys were going "105 miles per hour," and outrunning a helicopter.
There were shops, alleys, doorways, windows . . .which to me screamed: death, death, death, death...
The soldiers with LTC Kurilla were searching fast, weapons at the ready, and they quickly flex-cuffed two men. But these were not the right guys. Meanwhile, SSG Konkol's men were clearing towards us, leaving the three bad-guys boxed, but free.
Shots were fired behind us but around a corner to the left.
Both the young 2nd lieutenant and the young specialist were inside a shop when a close-quarters firefight broke out, and they ran outside. Not knowing how many men they were fighting, they wanted backup. LTC Kurilla began running in the direction of the shooting. He passed by me and I chased, Kurilla leading the way.
There was a quick and heavy volume of fire. And then LTC Kurilla was shot.
LTC Erik Kurilla (front right), the moment the bullets strike.(2nd LT front-left; radioman near-left; "AH" the interpreter is near-right.)
Three bullets reach flesh: One snaps his thigh bone in half.
[...]
Kurilla was running when he was shot, but he didn't seem to miss a stride; he did a crazy judo roll and came up shooting.
The Commander fights...
Must read. Gripping. Oustanding. Absolutely MUST READ. BTT.
Throw a grenade in there!
I'd think that guys going out on patrol in an urban area would have some.
BTTT
One more bump for the night crew. This one's a keeper.
> Why are the M4 rifles so weak? Is this standard issue? Why shouldn't our troops have more firepower than the terrorists?
The problem isn't the rifles or the bullets (though obviously there are tradeoffs with each). It is the fact that our young generation was brought up on video games where one shot takes out the enemy. They expect that of their service weapon.
But the reality is, lest you get a shot to the brain, heart, or aorta, a guy with his guts lying on the street can continue to fight for about 30 seconds, until the blood pressure drop renders him unconscious. In combat, 30 seconds is an eternity.
Well, they didn't. I recall this was a "new" team so maybe that explains it. So the CO led from the front. When he was hit the CSM stepped up and would have killed the terrorist mano a mano if given the chance (even though he too had been wounded). Think about that kind of leadership. A LTC was going in the door after the guy. HUEVOS, MUY GRANDES HUEVOS, amigo. BTW the terrorist was short one of those when it was over.
Thanks for posting bump & a Michael Yon ping!
From time to time, I’ll ping on noteworthy articles about politics, foreign and military affairs. FReepmail me if you want on or off my list.
One more bump for this amazing article.
Michael Yon rocks!
This is the best war reporting I've read yet. Ping for discostu, you have to read this guy.
Gotta bump it one more time. This is some of the best war reporting I've ever read.
Welcome to FR.
Cheers,
knews hound
Hugh Hewitt has a link to it on his website and he read from it on his radio program tonight.
ping all round - best read this week!
sorry if you were double/triple pinged - you won't be unhappy to read it, tho...
OK - thanks.
another bump and a tagline change...
VDH finally got knocked off for:
'But once the shooting starts, a plan is just a guess in a party dress.'
Separately, in an undercover operation, the Iraqi police detained four men whose kidnapping cell had abducted the 28-year-old wife of a Mosul journalist. This group was known to behead their victims, holding the world vicariously hostage with their crude cinemtography. This raid was interesting; information had recently come in that the terrorists were plotting to kill a journalist here in Mosul, and some officers believed the target was me. There is an interesting aside about a spy that Deuce Four detained who was actively trying to persuade me to visit what he described as a "safe" place in Iraq. While he is now in Abu Ghirab, I am still with Deuce Four, both of us "safe" for the moment. [For the record: If I am ever captured and seen on television telling the world that America is evil, I am lying.]
Wow, simply amazing! Aweseom. I think we need to support Michael's next dispatch. I am contributing financially what I can because it is very very important to report REAL HEROISM like that of Ltc. Kurilla so people know the QUALITY of an American Soldier- simply the world has NO MATCH to this kind of Heroes.
Excellent idea. I'll contribute also. I think we should all do what we can, even if it's just a little bit. Remember, Michael Yon is not being supported or sponsored by any media organization. He's there on his own dime. So far, nearly 1500 freepers have viewed this thread. If we all contributed just a couple of bucks...
The byline reads "Kirk Semple".
At the end of the article, the fine print says, "Reporting for this article was contributed by Ali Adeeb, Khalid al-Ansary, Thaier Aldaami and Omar Osama from Baghdad, Fakher Haider from Basra, and Iraqi employees of The New York Times from Kirkuk, Mosul and Najaf."
This is what happens when "journalists" hide in their hotel rooms and send Iraqi stringers, of unknown credibility, skills or biases, to "report" the story for them.
Give me a simple, unschooled "blogger" like Michael Yon any day. At least he's there reporting the story.
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