Feral Jundi

Monday, May 30, 2011

Industry Talk: Memorial Day…

This year I wanted to find an image that said more than anything I could ever say about what Memorial Day means. I do not know who the young lady is in the photo, but I do empathize and sympathize. I think everyone here recognizes what this photo says and what her loss means to her.

No matter what country you are from, no matter if you are a soldier or contractor, a man or woman, husband or wife, boyfriend or girlfriend, son or daughter, or friend and comrade–the loss and this woman’s personal and private remembrance of her loved one  is universally understood. It is one reminder of many, that sacrifice in war is profound and painful to endure for everyone. Te numquam obliviscar…. –Matt

Edit: 06/01/2011- One of my readers sent me a link to the obituary of the lost soldier that this women is mourning. He was a Ranger and rest in peace.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Books: You Have To Live Hard To Be Hard, By Dan Laguna

I remember when the Blackwater Little Bird (MD 500) went down in Iraq, and it was a shock to all of us working in the industry at the time. This crash and the deaths that resulted, hit home to a lot of folks, to include the brother of one of the dead–Dan Laguna. Dan’s book goes into some of the details of this crash, and the life and sacrifices of this 160th SOAR pilot and contractor Little Bird pilot.

These Little Bird pilots and crews did some amazing and extremely dangerous work back then.  If you remember the battle of Najaf or the rescue of the wounded Polish diplomat, you get an idea of the type of missions and contracts they were involved with. Which by the way, I did not know that the Polish government awarded Dan their Silver Star for the rescuing of their diplomat? (see video)

But the other thing I wanted to highlight here is that Dan represents the kind of sacrifice that contractors make and have given in this war.  In this war alone, from 09/01/2001 to 03/31/2011, there have been 2,620 contractors killed.(Xe has lost 29 KIA according to the DoL statistics, 33 according to T. Christine Miller’s graph) That is 2,620 souls that had friends and families, all destroyed by the worst disaster they could ever experience–the loss of a loved one or friend. Not to mention entire towns mourned the loss of these men and women, and the memory of that loss is with everyone forever…

During this Memorial Day weekend, there will be many folks out there looking back on this loss and trying make sense of it all. For some, the pain and despair is a constant, and any and all sources of inspiration is needed to get through the days.  That is why I recommend books like Dan Laguna’s. He is a military veteran and contractor veteran, and he lost his brother and comrades to war. If you want to learn how he copes, or understand his struggle to better understand how you can work through your loss and struggle, then this book is for you.

This book is also a testament to the kind of every day heroic deeds that contractors performed in these wars.  It is also a testament to the heroic deeds of a 160th SOAR pilots. Which brings up another point.

A contractor is usually a military veteran.  Most often, they are military veterans with incredible backgrounds, multiple deployments in the war, and have lost comrades. Not to mention the hard lives of the families of veterans who had to keep things going at the home front all of those years.

These veterans make up a large contingent of contractors. Some are even retired military veterans who definitely gave their pound of flesh to country….and then some. And yet these same men continue to serve and die as contractors, and to me, that is inspirational and something to admire. –Matt

Dan Laguna’s blog here.

Buy the book here.

Facebook for book here.

Blackwater’s Little Birds blog here.

Find the book in the Jundi Gear Locker here.


Book Description from Amazon
On July 20, 1994, Dan Laguna and Carlos Guerrero of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment SOAR were in a devastating helicopter accident. Carlos died and Dan spent months in the hospital recovering from 3rd and 4th degree full thickness burns and several broken bones. His story of survival is miraculous, inspirational and motivating. He returned to duty a year later and served seven more years in his unit before retiring.
After retiring from the Army and moving to Utah, Dan took a job working as a contractor for Blackwater USA in 2004. On January 23, 2007 his brother, Art Laguna, and four of his brothers in arms were killed when their helicopter was shot down over Baghdad, Iraq.
Dan Laguna’s helicopter had extensive damage due to small arms fire and was forced to land but after inspecting the helicopter and noticing dozens of insurgents racing toward them, he decided to take the risk and fly back to the Green Zone.
This book is a tribute to his fallen brothers whose, courage, bravery, and patriotism are what make this country what it is today.

—————————————————————-

Utah Helicopter Pilot Talks About Battle That Killed Brother
January 24th, 2007
First of all my brother is and was a HERO. All he ever wanted to do from the time I can remember as a child, was he wanted to fly. He became one of the most professional pilots you could have ever known. I recruited my brother to join us with Blackwater Aviation. We get a lot of resumes but only a few have the qualifications to join us. This is one of the most demanding jobs in Iraq. The military flies some every day, but we in Blackwater Aviation are up flying in the RED zone every day all day.

(more…)

Cool Stuff: Hero Contractor Pilot And Author Dan Laguna On The Loss Of His Brother And Comrades

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Industry Talk: What Memorial Day Means To A Security Contractor

A memorial on campus at Xe honors fallen comrades. 

*****

What Memorial Day Means To A Security Contractor

5/30/2010

     What does Memorial Day mean to a security contractor?  Well for one, it is an American holiday, so I imagine that American security contractors would be more in the position of remembrance than any other contractors from other countries.  But under contract with companies who work for US DoD, DoS, etc., many contractors from other countries have died.  That includes local nationals like Iraqis or Afghanis, or third country nationals who include everyone else. I guess my point is that do we only recognize the sacrifice of American fallen during this day, when so many have died in support of America and this global war?  Or do these contractors only get recognized by their country for their sacrifice in this war, and we only focus on American contractors during our Memorial Day? Because on this day and in this war, a security contractor has many deaths to remember and pay respects to.

   For one, a security contractor in this war usually is a military veteran and from the combat arms.  So more than likely, they knew men or women that died in the war when they were in the military.  When that veteran got out of the military and went back into service as a security contractor, they might have been in a position to lose fellow contractors as well.  Those fallen contractors could be American, or they could be South African, or they could be some Iraqi team member. It could be all three in an attack, and an IED does not discriminate.  The common bond between all parties is the service given during the war and the companies they worked for.

   So the question comes up again.  What does Memorial Day mean to a security contractor?  Well to me it is a remembrance for all of those who died in the first Gulf War (I was a Marine in this war). I also have a profound respect for all the fallen soldiers of all other wars the US has been in.  It is not a day of picnics on the lake, or sales at shopping centers.  Memorial Day is a somber day, in which you are reminded that you are the lucky one who lived, and those that are in the ground are the ones who did not.

   Then there is the other side of me who is a security contractor.  As a contractor, I remember three groups who have all made sacrifices.  I remember the Iraqi jundis that I worked with who were killed in the war.  I remember the South African I worked with who was killed.  And I remember the Americans I worked with who were killed.  All of these deaths are sacrifices that have meaning to me and to my fellow contractors who worked in those companies and on those contracts.

   On this day I give equal attention to both the military deaths and contractor deaths, and that is what Memorial Day means to a security contractor.  The difference between the sacrifice of both sides, is that the military deaths are paid the ultimate respect by society, and the contractor deaths are ignored by society.  There are no holidays dedicated to fallen security contractors, no monuments at the Mall in Washington DC for security contractors, and no special headstones for fallen security contractors in cemeteries.  If anything, a fallen security contractor is buried with a headstone that has dedications to their military service.

   But that is changing, and private industry has found ways to remember the fallen.  For an example, the company Xe (Blackwater) has a memorial for it’s fallen contractors.  I imagine that the families and friends of fallen Xe contractors will be going to this memorial as well as to the cemetery where that individual was buried on Memorial Day.  So that is two places for the friends and family to go and bravo to Xe for building such a thing.

   Still, there is nothing in the US that is dedicated to contractors who have perished in the war. There isn’t even an accurate accounting of all the contractors that have been killed in this war.  At this time, I can’t even give a statistic like who was the first security contractor or regular contractor killed in the war. Were they an expat, local national, or third country national?  I could speculate or maybe just go off of wikipedia or icasualties.org, but both of these sites have proven to be insufficient in providing a complete database.  Even the Department of Labor’s count of deaths based on death benefits and insurance claims is incomplete. But we certainly know who was the first soldiers or federal employees to die in the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan.

   Then there is the historical perspective on contractor deaths in war. Is there a monument or memorial for the privateers that were killed during the early wars of the US?  Or do their sacrifices not count when it comes to the founding of this country?  How about the thousands of men and women who perished in all of the wars that the US has fought, who worked as contractors (or whatever name given to private industry warriors over the years).  I have made a point of bringing that history back into the discussion about contractors, because these are all sacrifices given during the process of defending and supporting the US over the years, and that should mean something.

   Perhaps one day congress will recognize the sacrifice of private industry during times of war. A monument that serves to recognize all types of contractors, and from all countries, who have all participated in and died in our wars.  I could not foresee the names of all of those contractors on a monument like this, because unfortunately there is no list for such a thing. Either way, a monument would be a great way to show that contractors are not forgotten and that their sacrifice does matter.

    So to answer the question I brought up in the beginning. Memorial Day for me is a remembrance for both the military and civilian deaths in this war, and wars past. I also remember those who died who were not only Americans, but were from other countries. And when I walk through a cemetery and see the head stones with crosses and military honors on them, I also think about the civilian contractors out there who were killed in the war that have nothing on their head stones to identify their service. If there is a monument locally where a veterans group is putting on a ceremony, I often like attending those.  Guys like myself pay their respects in ways that best suit them.  I like to write, and this blog gives me the opportunity to pay tribute.

    Others might be overseas working during this day, and paying tribute could mean attending a ceremony on some FOB or outpost.  In this digital age, many go on to the forums and pay their respect online. Contractors remember their fallen brothers when they were in the military, and they remember their fallen brothers in the various companies they have worked for. Most of all, military veterans and contractors remember their dead every day, and it doesn’t take a holiday to remind them to do so. But it is a day designed to put attention on war time sacrifice, and reminds those who have not served or have not lost someone that such a sacrifice exists.  That is Memorial Day for a security contractor, and my personal thoughts on the matter. Rest in peace to the fallen. –Matt

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Industry Talk: Memorial Day and Contractors

     On this memorial day weekend, I have two groups of fallen that I want to remember.  Those are the deaths of our military men and women, and the deaths of contractors.  Both groups have equal importance in my view, and both have given equal sacrifice in this war.

    But in the context of this blog, this is more of a dedication to the under reported and often forgotten sacrifices of my industry’s fallen.  I am proud of our service in this war, and like most, I have lost comrades during this long fight.  And I am not just talking about American deaths, I am talking about the sacrifices of contractors from all around the world.  Just look down the list of Iraq (1,314) and Afghanistan (111) casualties and read the names and places of each fallen contractor.  

   I also want to talk about those that are not on this list as official casualties in this war.  Because of how large and unregulated the industry has become, the accurate tracking of every contractor in the war has not happened.  I am talking about contractors that are not working for the DoD or Coalition in some official capacity. We are talking about contractors that have worked for NGO’s or some private business that have died in the war. Their sacrifice should not go unnoticed, and to me, these are the unknown security contractors of the war that have truly been forgotten. Not to forget the hundreds of Iraqi or Afghan contractors that have died supporting the cause as well.    

   So to share a story that is personal to me, I want to highlight one of those individuals that are not on the list(s).  His name is Dane Mortensen, and he was a former Marine and Idaho resident.  I had helped him in his quest in becoming a contractor when he got out of the Marines via emails, and he was very excited to finally get his first break in the industry.  He had worked in Qatar for Dyncorp for a bit, and then went on to work for Securiforce in Iraq.  Here is his last email to me, and a month later he was killed.  I also posted his obituary.

   Below, I also found two stories of contractors recently killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Rest in peace, and my heart goes out to the friends and family of the fallen.  Semper Fi. –Matt  

—————————————————————–

10/25/07

Matt,

Hows it going bro?  I just wanted to send you a quick note and see how you were doing back there in idaho and see if you’d started looking for contracts here.  Have you ever heard of a brit company called securiforce?  I’ve been talking to them for a week or so and it looks like i might be going with them on 1nov doing convoy security.  They kinda look like crecent, rolling in pickups with iraqi drivers and nepelese gunners.  anyhow the pay is good and the RR time is great just wanted to see if you knew anything about them.  Take care

Semper Fi

Dane 

*****

Dane Richard Mortensen died, in Iraq last Sunday, Nov. 25, 2007 while escorting a convoy supporting coalition efforts in the war. A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Nov. 30, 2007 at the LDS Meridian North Stake Center, located at 5555 North Locust Grove Rd. in Meridian, Idaho. Dane entered this world on March 31, 1984, weighing 10 lbs 7 oz in Boise. His physical size was perhaps necessary to hold his spirit, love of life, and mischief. 

(more…)

Older Posts »

Powered by WordPress