Michael J. Durant - Blackhawk Down pilot - 18 November 2016
Michael J. "Mike" Durant (born July 23, 1961) is an American pilot and author. He was a member of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Night Stalkers) as a Chief Warrant Officer 3. He retired from the Army as a Chief Warrant Officer 4 Blackhawk helicopter Master Aviator in the 160th SOAR after participating in combat operations Prime Chance, Just Cause, and Desert Storm, and also Gothic Serpent, in which he was briefly held prisoner in 1993 after a raid in Somalia. His awards include the Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster, Bronze Star with Valor Device, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, three Air Medals, POW Medal, and many others.
During Operation Gothic Serpent in Somalia, Durant was the pilot of helicopter "Super Six Four." It was the second MH-60L of two Black Hawk helicopters to crash during the Battle of Mogadishu on October 3, 1993. His helicopter was hit on the tail by a rocket-propelled grenade. That led to its crash about a mile southwest of the operation's target. Durant and his crew of three, Bill Cleveland, Ray Frank, and Tommy Field, survived the crash, though they were all badly injured. Durant suffered a broken femur and a badly injured back. Two Delta Force snipers, MSG Gary Gordon and SFC Randy Shughart, had been providing suppressive fire from the air at hostile Somalis who were converging on the crash site. Both volunteered for insertion onto the ground to protect the crew and join Durant in fighting off the advancing Somalis. The pair killed an estimated 25 Somalis, before they ran out of ammunition. They were soon overwhelmed and killed, after Cleveland, Frank and Field had died. Both Gordon and Shughart received the Medal of Honor posthumously for their heroism in this action.
Sent him 2 photos on 9 Nov and got both back signed and inscribed with Super 64 on 18 Nov...
Michael Durant
c/o Pinnacle Solutions Inc
Ste. 301
8 Parade St. NW
Huntsville, AL 35806-4850 |
