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 ...
I was supposed to go there. Wished I had done it. But I was just leaving a 2nd assignment at a remote site in Alaska. And before that I was previously assigned to Buckley in Aurora (outside Denver). Was getting rather tired of the cold weather. So they sent me to South Carolina - which was hotter than hell and a big mistake...lol
Buckley’s a nice place. At least in Colorado you could go skiing and drink Coors (back when it was good). I was at Woomera in Australia. I think it had the same mission as Buckley.
DUDE! You were at Woomera? You’re absolutely correct - same mission. Damn small world!!! :-)
I was in the DRC—Data Reduction Center - IBM 360, then we upgraded to a 370. Heady days...
What year?
See my bio. 1982-1984. We probably knew a lot of the same people. Some AFSCs went to Buckley, Woomera, Buckley, Woomera... Well you know that.
Ahhhh...nice...I was at Buckley from 76-78...we might’ve known the same folks.
Chappy James was the best, now wasn’t he? :-)
I don’t want to hijack the thread, but I’ve met and talked to General James.
I was “appointed” (roped into) to do some Airman charity drive for NORAD in January 1977, and I got to ask for and take his donation check at the old Chidlaw Building, while the Peterson AFB paper took pictures.
Which I could find my long lost copy!
So, to avoid a complete hijack, let me just say when I retired in 1998, I knew in my mind and heart the USAF would continue proudly, in war and peace, as long as NCOs like TSgt Chapman (who was also called Chappy) served.
Chapman is a Great American...a hero.
Why has this award taken so long to be made?
Thankful we still have such men as this. May the divine hold him in the palms of their hands.
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