U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Zachary Rhyner of the 21st Special Tactics Squadron was serving in Operation Enduring Freedom when his unit fell under attack on 6 April 2008. Rhyner’s mission included a team of 12 Special Forces Troops who were dropped from helicopters in Shok Valley, Afghanistan, in order to take out an insurgent group. The jihadis gained the high ground, however. During the six-hour battle that followed, Rhyner, despite being injured, fought hard and provided “suppressive fire with his M-4 rifle against enemy fire while fellow teammates were extracted from the line of fire,” according to his award citation. In addition to cover fire, Rhyner coordinated more than 50 aerial attacks on the enemy. His actions helped save the lives of many American and Afghan troops. In December, 10 soldiers received the Silver Star for their heroism in that battle — the largest such number for a single battle since the Vietnam War. Sgt. Rhyner recently received the Air Force Cross, the highest decoration awarded by the service and the first in six years.
Ohoo Rah Zoomie!
Conservative Libertarian Outpost 
May 2, 2009 at 11:44
[…] Original post by Patrick Sperry […]
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