Tales of valor

I found this while surfing the web and thought it was worth sharing.
How bout we get a running thread going to share "tales of valor", stories of courage by military or non-military heroes.

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John Noonan
March 5, 2010 1:30 PM

A terrific tale of courage and calm under pressure, courtesy of our friends from across the pond.
Anything less than Lt. Fortune's superb handling of the situation would have cost the lives of 20 of Her Majesty's soldiers.

A British Chinook helicopter pilot was shot between the eyes by a Taliban bullet - but flew on and saved all 20 aboard, The Sun reported.

The Sun reports that Flight Lieutenant Ian Fortune, 28, had flown in to pick up casualties as a firefight raged between American and Afghan forces and heavily-armed rebels near Garmsir in Helmand Province. Flt-Lt Fortune - who had TV presenter Mike Brewer on the aircraft filming a documentary - was advised to hold off on approach to the battle as it was "too hot" on the ground. He circled until troops reported incoming fire had calmed down.

But as he flew in the helicopter came under attack - which continued as casualties were being loaded.

Then, as he lifted off, Flt-Lt Fortune was shot. A bullet hit a metal rail on the front of his helmet which is used to attach night vision goggles.The round then penetrated his helmet hitting him between the eyes. It knocked his head back and caused severe bleeding.

More bullets followed, hitting the Chinook's controls and shutting down the stabilisation system. But with blood pouring into his eyes, Flt-Lt Fortune battled with the controls to stop the chopper from spiraling out of control

Then with the aircraft lurching from side to side he continued flying for eight minutes before landing at Camp Bastion.

Wow. That's just... amazing... NVG mounts save lives

Thats crazy \"Watch your language\" right there.

Godd bless them all...

That is amazing.

But yeah NVG mounts have saved a few lives. I read a story on Yahoo about a Marine marksmen who got hit in the same place by a Taliban sniper and lived. He was back up and on the roof tops within a few minutes of being hit.

AP: Living soldier may get Medal of Honor

WASHINGTON — The military has sent the White House a recommendation to award the Medal of Honor to a soldier for bravery in Afghanistan, which could make him the first living recipient since the Vietnam War.

The Army soldier ran through a hail of enemy fire to repel Taliban fighters in a 2007 battle, saving the lives of a half dozen other men, two U.S. officials said Wednesday. They declined to name the soldier and spoke on condition of anonymity because he is still under consideration for the honor.

There is concern, officials say that early disclosure could place political pressure on President Barack Obama to approve the medal or could cause embarrassment for the soldier if it's not approved.

The nation's highest award for valor has been awarded only six times in the nine years of war in Afghanistan and Iraq - and all were awarded posthumously.

That small number has prompted member of Congress to ask the Pentagon to examine its policy for awarding the medal, a process that can take years and involves several reviews up the chain of command.

Officials have said it's hard to compare the number awarded since the 2001 start of the Afghanistan invasion with the hundreds awarded in World War II and Vietnam because warfare has evolved so much in recent decades.

Those earlier wars frequently involved close conflict with an organized enemy formation, for instance, while today's fighting is against non-uniformed insurgents who use remotely detonated roadside bombs, suicide bombers, sniper attacks and other tactics that avoid the risk of engaging personally with U.S. forces.

It's really a shame that it's a shock when someone who's living is awarded the Medal of Honor.

I read about a Brit who was shot in the face by Taliban and walk SIX miles for treatment.

Jarhead, i know what you mean. It is a shame-

i remember hearing a story about a marine who jumped on a grenade and insurgent threw in a room his squad was in. to save their lives he sacrificed his.

but yes jarhead is right.... it's a shame most people who have received this honor died for it.

Jarhead999 76 65 wrote:

It's really a shame that it's a shock when someone who's living is awarded the Medal of Honor.

Two best examples-
Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart. I can't even tell you what I'd give to speak to these selfless, amazing individuals in person.
Unfortunately, that can never happen.

M14, Dam Straight.

Of everyone in the past decade who received it, they deserved it most.

mgunner564 wrote:

M14, Dam Straight.

Of everyone in the past decade who received it, they deserved it most.

so everyone else didn't deserve it? that marine who jumped on that grenade to save his squad mates is less deserving than them?

sure it was selfless of them. but i wouldn't go so far as to say they deserved it the most. after all they aren't the only ones to receive the MOH

Not really what i was getting at. Yes, they all deserved it, just some gave all. Such as that Marine, Gary and Randy.