Chapter 9: Risky Missions and Empty Targets

1 The vastness … the lead. Weapon of Choice: ARSOF in Afghanistan, by Charles H. Briscoe, Richard L. Kiper, James A. Schroder, and Kalev I. Sepp (Fort Leavenworth, Kans.: Combat Studies Institute Press, 2004), pp. 109–14; American Soldier, p. 302; a Delta operator. Franks’s book lists the time as “1429 hours in Tampa, almost 0100 on October 20 in Afghanistan,” but this cannot be true. The time difference between the East Coast of the United States and Afghanistan on that date was eight and a half hours, and multiple sources place H-hour for the missions at 1845 Zulu, or 11:15 P.M. local (Afghan) time.… without the essential context … See, for instance CJCS General Richard Myers’s comments in the October 20, 2001, press briefing at the Pentagon: http://www.defense.gov/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=2145.… JSOC was taking the lead. Several hundred miles to the northeast, pilots from the 160th’s 2nd Battalion were pushing their MH-47E Chinooks “to the limits of design performance” traversing “mountain ranges higher than any the Night Stalkers had ever flown” as they ferried the first two 5th Special Forces Group A-teams into Afghanistan from Kharsi-Khanabad, according to Weapon of Choice, p. 96. This reference says the first Special Forces A-team into Afghanistan, ODA 595, landed at 2 A.M. local time, or two hours and forty-five minutes after the JSOC elements at Gecko and Rhino.

2 At MacDill … said calmly. American Soldier, pp. 302, 304.

3 A Predator … the target. A source monitoring the mission from the Kitty Hawk.

4 Global Positioning … Afghan war. Weapon of Choice, pp. 109, 111. (This author was unable to find any other source to confirm this level of Taliban casualties.) … gunships … Weapon of Choice says there were multiple AC-130s over Rhino, Franks in American Soldier speaks of only one.… 105mm cannon … American Soldier, p. 304.

5 They were just … “the way!” Rakow; Weapon of Choice, pp. 109, 113.

6 Now the Talons … the jump. Weapon of Choice, pp. 109, 111.

7 Outside … on the objective. Weapon of Choice, pp. 111, 114.

8 For this … the night. Rakow.

9 The Masirah … began to rise. The Mission, the Men, and Me, pp. 148–49.

10 The JSOC advance … October 10. A senior member of the JSOC staff; a 160th SOAR source; Rakow.

11 Within a few … “UBL.” The Mission, the Men, and Me, pp. 149–50. Like many in the U.S. military, Blaber used the alternative spelling—Usama—of bin Laden’s first name when referring to the Al Qaeda leader by his initials.

12 Despite the size … its head. Senior 160th SOAR source; retired special operations officer; 160th SOAR pilots; Delta sources; a Team 6 source.

13 … after steaming … JSOC personnel. American Soldier, pp. 266, 284–85; http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k4/kitty_hawk-ii.html.

14 These included … aircraft. Two Delta operators; a JSOC staff officer; Rakow; a senior 160th SOAR source; a TF Brown source; a retired special operations officer; http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k4/kitty_hawk-ii.html.

15 By October 15 … carrier. http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k4/kitty_hawk-ii.html; American Soldier, p. 285.

16 Task Force Sword’s … “lot of work.” A 160th SOAR source; http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k4/kitty_hawk-ii.html.… only 15 … Eight F/A-18C Hornets, three S-3B Vikings, two C-2A Greyhounds, and two SH-60Bs Seahawks.

17 On September 20 … “in success.” http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/infocus/bushrecord/documents/Selected_Speeches_George_W_Bush.pdf.

18 … Central Command proposed … A retired special operations officer, who said the decision to make them JSOC’s first targets was made between Franks, Dailey, and Franks’s director of operations, Air Force Major General Gene Renuart.

19 One came … southern Afghanistan. American Soldier, p. 303.… 100 miles southwest of Kandahar … 6,400-foot paved runway … From the Sea: U.S. Marines in Afghanistan, 2001–2002, by Colonel Nathan S. Lowrey (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Marine Corps History Division, 2011), p. 98.

20 The airstrip … point there. A retired special operations officer.

21 The Rangers … September 11 … Rakow.

22 … when there were … heliborne) missions. A planning cell source.

23 The Gecko … Black Hawks. A planning cell source; a senior 160th SOAR source.

24 The Rhino … air assault. A planning cell source.

25 Indeed … back to the carrier. A senior 160th SOAR source; a planning cell source.

26 Franks himself … “territory.” American Soldier, p. 303.

27 “When an” … Blaber wrote. The Mission, the Men, and Me, p. 151.

28 In his autobiography … American friends. American Soldier, pp. 303–4.… a wealth of exploitable intelligence … Franks said he hoped to find “tactical maps, radio frequencies, satellite telephone numbers, lists of overseas agents, perhaps even the locations of secret refuges in Afghanistan where Taliban or al Qaeda leaders might be hiding.”

29 “He believed” … Blaber wrote. The Mission, the Men, and Me, p. 152.

30 Several … raids. A retired special operations officer; a Delta source; Hall.

31 JSOC also … Kabul itself. A source on the Kitty Hawk.

32 Another … October 14. Hall.

33 The operation … refuelings. Two 160th SOAR sources.

34 A couple of days … on the targets. A TF Sword source.

35 Having initially … “antiaircraft guns.” A planning cell source; The Mission, the Men, and Me, p. 151.

36 The mission … objectives. Little Bird pilots; a source on the Kitty Hawk.

37 In preparation … refuel there. A TF Brown source.

38 Unlike the … the flight. Rakow.

39 The regimental … psychological operations team … Weapon of Choice, pp. 113–14.

40 The Combat Talons … compound itself. Official Defense Department film of the assault, viewed here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFk6BmHEROE.… trail formation … American Soldier, p. 302.

41 After landing … surrender. Weapon of Choice, pp. 109, 111.

42 … quintessential Ranger mission … Once on the ground, securing the airstrip was just one element of Task Force 3/75’s mission. The others were: to destroy any Taliban forces there; to gather intelligence materials; to establish a helicopter FARP; to establish a casualty transload site; and “to assess the capabilities of the airfield for future operations.” Weapon of Choice, p. 109.

43 But the presence … at Masirah. Weapon of Choice, p. 116.

44 The Rangers … night air. Weapon of Choice, p. 112.

45 As the Rangers … “on the run.” American Soldier, pp. 304–5.

46 But the infiltration … pre-assigned targets. 160th SOAR sources.… flight lead … The flight lead is the pilot—almost always a warrant officer—responsible for planning, executing, coordinating, and leading the mission. It should be noted that aviation units differentiate between leading and commanding. The air mission commander is almost always a commissioned officer.

47 … one of four DAPs … A TF Brown source.

48 … clipped a wall … In American Soldier on p. 305 Franks says this accident happened on exfil. Every other source I have says it happened on infil.

49 The MH-47 … in Panama. Two Delta sources.

50 The accident … circumstances. A TF Brown source.

51 Central Command … hoped to find. American Soldier, p. 303.

52 “The Taliban … enemy killed.” American Soldier, p. 305.

53 “Escape and Evasion,” by Seymour M. Hersh, The New Yorker, November 12, 2001.

54 “None of our” … wrote Blaber. The Mission, the Men, and Me, p. 172.

55 Even Franks … book. “Ground Force Boosted,” by Kenneth R. Bazinet, New York Daily News, November 5, 2001: http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/ground-force-boosted-u-s-sends-troops-set-long-fight-article-1.920839. It is possible Franks knew some operators were wounded by their own grenade and was being disingenuous when he used the phrase “wounded by enemy fire.”

56 … “frags instead of bangers” … A “frag” is a fragmentation grenade, designed to wound and kill; a “banger” is a flash-bang grenade designed to temporarily stun and disorient.

57 … “ate their own frags” … Two other Delta sources confirmed this account.

58 … as many as eight … earlier that day … A source monitoring the mission on the Kitty Hawk.

59 At 11:55 P.M.… later. A TF Brown source.

60 The Gecko … sunrise. A TF Brown source.

61 Once the helicopters … on the ground. Weapon of Choice, p. 113; American Soldier, p. 305.

62 Back in Tampa … bad news. American Soldier, p. 305.

63 Task Force Sword’s … were killed. Weapon of Choice, p. 113; a TF Brown source.

64 … others instantly flashed back to … From the Sea, p. 61.

65 As the Rangers … around the world. Weapon of Choice, pp. 115–17.… who had not watched … over the phone … A source in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

66 The Joint Chiefs’ … to conduct.” The official transcript of Myers’s press conference, accessed at: http://www.defense.gov/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=2145.

67 The task force … October 23. A source on Masirah.