Opels may be faster than Kiowas on straight-a-ways, but when the car made turns, the helicopter quickly caught up. Kurilla ordered the Kiowa to fire a warning shot, then quickly authorized the Kiowa to disable the vehicle.

Kiowas are small, carrying just two people; they fly so low the two flying soldiers are practically infantrymen. The pilot swooped low and the “co-pilot” aimed his rifle at the Opel, firing three shots and blowing out the back window. The Kiowa swooped and banked hard in front of the car, firing three more shots through the front hood, the universal sign for “stop.”

The car chase ended, but the men fled on foot up an alley. We approached in the Strykers and I heard Kurilla say on the radio, “Shots fired!” as he ducked for a moment then popped back up in the hatch. Kurilla continued, “Trail section clear the car and clear south to north! I’m going to block the back door on the north side!”

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.

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 toward 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.

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That man REALLY liked killing Communists.

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Central highlands. Circa 1969...

http://i192.photobucket.com/albums/z64/chadwimc/1969-27.jpg

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Everytime I see this pic it brings back alot of bad memories.



http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/4945/13wk5.jpg



I served with the guys in this pic...they were in 2nd Plt. Charlie Co. 3/15 Inf. It was taken on 27th Feb 1991 at Jalibah Airfield Iraq.



The guy on the left with his arm in the sling is Sgt. Kozakiewicz, the middle guy is SP4. Santarakis and Sp4 Andy Alaniz is in the bodybag.



My buddy Hutto was also KIA that day....I miss him to this day and its been 20 years





RIP Brothers

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Wife's grandad.  The grins are after getting shotup by the japs.  A few weeks later he was shot down again over Iwo Jimo.  We are still researching his career, but we know of 4 airplanes he managed to get destroyed during the war, but still made it home AND managed to smile about it.  And yes, the same photo has appeared in a few books.  

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af67/broken_reticle/hellcat.png

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Forget it.  It's already been pointed out.

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http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Torni_lauri.jpg
Larry Thorne

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Yeppers, in before someone bitches about his uniform.

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I addressed this on page 1

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Deep indeed; deeper than anyone who has never been there will ever understand...

Some more...

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_AG66h899ZGw/SFJhvq9EmLI/AAAAAAAAB0I/oI5NJAnjrJA/60725-1.jpg

http://cache.boston.com/universal/site_graphics/blogs/bigpicture/iraq_09_03/iraq18.jpg

An old favorite returns to duty in Iraq - courtesy of the "Essayons".

http://user4026.websitewizard.com/images/photo-18-sgm-prosser-standing-with-prisoner-downa-730.jpg

Nuff said. I'd walk through any doorway with this man by my side any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

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When those guys hopped onto an Apache gunship to get up to the fight where their buddies were getting beaten by the Taliban...

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Just found this thread and was going to ask the same question.

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I can't believe how great some of the people are that want to represent my country.  I could never thank them enough.

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Want to know the really cool thing about it? I can guarantee you not ONE of them got up in the morning thinking, "I'm going to do something incredibly selfless and noble today."



The men and women of the United States military are ordinary people doing extraordinary things, daily. THAT, right there, is what makes America the nation that thousands of people die trying to get to every year.

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My humble contribution. This was soon after I had heat-stroke. I'm still not in the right frame of mind.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/hs027.snc6/165704_496424387000_523207000_6630306_8382986_n.jpg

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http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y217/dirksterg30/military/472px-Kittinger-jump.jpg

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Your dad and My Dad were in the Corps at the same time!!  



My Dad was at Lejeune in 55

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In Kosovo

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That first picture you posted on this post is actually my uncles CO and he took the picture if I recall correctly. Not sure where you got the picture but it is pretty badass.

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The wounded man is 1st Sgt Kasal, now Sgt Maj Kasal, a highly decorated Badass man. The picture has been all over the Interwebs and Military magazines for years..

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In that photo, he had lost a lot of blood.  Great man doing great things.  Get the book. "My Men are My Heroes"  The Brad Kasal Story.

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Professional commie killer. Dad was a bad mofo.
http://i923.photobucket.com/albums/ad74/outlaw6076/Dad45thIDKorea52.jpg