Posted on 05/20/2009 6:00:39 AM PDT by Terrence DoGood
They were attacked by small-arms and machine gun fire and rocket-propelled grenades from two directions. The team split up to maneuver around the enemy threat, with Sergeant Huhman's team taking cover behind a mud wall.
Using his joint terminal attack control skills, the combat controller directed a flight of F-15E Strike Eagles to drop two 500-pound bombs 50 meters from his position. The "danger close" drops successfully eliminating enemy fighters embedded on a hilltop.
Sergeant Huhman, repeatedly exposing himself to enemy fire, continued to call in close-air support for the team and coordinated a route allowing them to escape from the valley. In total, he directed the release of more than 8,000 pounds of ordnance and controlled six different attack and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft during the 26-hour ordeal.
Despite the barrage of gunfire and length of the battle, the combat veteran maintained his composure and killed 41 enemy fighters, all without losing a single American life.
(Excerpt) Read more at af.mil ...
That "thump" must have rattled his teeth with only a mud wall between him and the blast.
That sentence left me amazed. Talk about “Danger Close”...
Glad it worked the way it did.
I tip my hat and personally salute Sergeant Huhman for his quick and decisive action.
Indeed. I'm guessing two Bronze Stars means very little to a man who already has a matching pair of Titanium onions.
And all they could find on the other side of the wall was a few jihadii loose teeth lying around.
Gives a new definition to “battle rattle” after a couple 500 pounders drop 50 meters from your position, eh?
Makes me wonder if they were JDAMs or similar, and thus the reason he was exposed to fire was that he was lasing the jihadii’s ...
Still.. titanium.
There has to be a better way to knock the dust off your helmet... :)
What's really interesting is that Sgt. Huhman had enough confidence in our bombing accuracy to in an airstrike that close.
Just goes to show that we have a bunch of good folks out there, with top-notch equipment to back them up.
“... was a force reconnaissance Marine...”
He was brought up right. :)
Paralyzed with fear is no hyperbole.People that
can think and act under fire like that are amazing.
Hope he still has his hearing,most guys come back
half deaf from war unless they are REMF`s
Can`t imagine a 500 pounder 50 meteres away...one
heck of a hole...can`t imagine what the kill radius
would be for a bomb that big,just the concussion
Well done Sgt Hunar...he sure earned those awards
I hear you, but even those REMF’s are needed and serve a valuable role. Most aren’t at the “tip of the sword”.
The money shot.
Currently fielded JDAMS are GPS only; there is an effort underway to put a SAL seeker into the mix.
If he was lasing, they were dropping Paveway’s. And Paveway III’s have a SAL seeker and GPS capability though most still dropped are SAL only Paveway II’s.
Not sure he will use his ipod for a while but great story. Techology should develop, if the Kenyan will alow it, to allow a 60+ yr old (moi) to sit at a console and with other drone cameras do it from the comfort of the USA. Semper Fi.
A MK82 will make a helluva bang. Splinters are fatal at ranges over 3000 feet. A good deal, the bomb itself goes for just over $250 USD.
Overpressure is not such a big deal.
“The effect of blast on personnel is confined to a relatively short distance (110 feet for a 2000 pound bomb).”
(http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/dumb/bombs.htm)
For specifics on a MK82
(http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/dumb/mk82.htm)
The Mk 82 is the warhead for the GBU-12 laser-guided bombs and for the GBU-38 JDAM.
Force Recon to USAF ETAC - wow, must have been a real lifestyle change for him while on garrison.
The Air Force got the better part of the deal, no doubt.
Anyway...
"Despite the barrage of gunfire and length of the battle, the combat veteran maintained his composure and killed 41 enemy fighters, all without losing a single American life."
Biblical Kill Ratio and par for the course in the Good vs. Evil battle.
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