You share the emotional strain of the family as they deal with the loss of Aaron.īut you also share the anguish of a father who learns he has been lied to as he uncovers the truth. In Billy’s book, you feel his pride in his son and the moment when he learned of his son’s death. I know the story in detail because I received the classified briefing on the incident. Billy and Karen Vaughn live just north of me in Stuart, Florida, and I came to know them as they reached out to me while I served in Congress on this matter. I recommend you all pick up a copy of the book, Betrayed: The Shocking True Story of Extortion 17 as told by a Navy SEAL’s father by Billy Vaughn. The AWT had eyes on the point of origin of the RPG shots but the AH-64s were denied approval to engage the enemy - who were seen handing down equipment and fleeing the area. One hit the CH-47D’s tail rotor blade and in approximately 5 seconds it broke up into three pieces and crashed into a dry creek bed in a ball of flames. From a prepared firing position atop a building, they launched three rocket-propelled grenades. Because of the rules of engagement, no pre-assault fires were approved on the HLZ and there were no “eyes on” the HLZ to support the QRF infiltration. Unescorted, the CH-47D made its way to the area of operations in the Tangi River valley, a Taliban stronghold.
The lumbering CH-47D is slow and possesses less maneuver capability than the normal special operations MH-47 aircraft. The QRF loaded onto a CH-47D Chinook aircraft headed into a hot HLZ zone where combat operations had been raging for some three hours. But just before takeoff, seven Afghan Commandos who were listed on the manifest to accompany the mission were switched out, and the new Afghans were not manifested. Again, permission to engage was denied.īack at the Forward Operating Base, the decision was made to launch the Quick Reaction Force (QRF). The AWT then observed these two individuals, who they assessed to be armed, link up with six others who took up positions near the proposed helicopter landing zone (HLZ) that would be used later. The mission that fateful evening entailed US Army Rangers going into the Tangi River valley in Wardak Province in Afghanistan after Taliban leader Qari Tahir.Īs the Rangers landed and executed their mission, the Aerial Weapons Team (AWT) in two US Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopters observed two individuals fleeing, but permission to engage with 30mm guns was denied.
It was also the largest loss of Navy Special Warfare life in their history. Back on August 6, 2011, six months after Navy SEALs had terminated Osama Bin Laden, America suffered the single largest one-day loss of life in the ten year combat operation in Afghanistan.
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