The 53 Fort Carson soldiers in the Keating fight earned the two Medals of Honor, the nation’s top award for gallantry, as well as nine Silver Star Medals, 18 Bronze Star Medals for Valor, 27 Purple Heart Medals and 37 Army Commendation Medals, leading Obama to describe them as the most decorated unit in the Army.
Quite the honor and this is the second Medal of Honor given to a participant of the Battle of Kamdesh. The first one was Staff Sergeant Clinton Romesha, not to mention all of the other battlefield awards given to the units involved. Above is the list of awards the 3rd Troop, 61st Cavalry Regiment have received from just this one battle. –Matt
Aug 26, 2013
President awards Staff Sergeant Ty M. Carter, U.S. Army, the Medal of Honor for his courageous actions while serving as a cavalry scout with Bravo Troop, 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, during combat operations in Kamdesh District, Nuristan Province, Afghanistan on October 3, 2009. Staff Sergeant Carter is the fifth living recipient to be awarded the Medal of Honor for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan. August 26, 2013.
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This is an excellent simulation of this battle, and a big thanks to Matt at Facebook for giving me the heads up. Long War Journal also posted this thing, and keep your eyes on the comments there if you want to review feedback.
Might I also add if you didn’t know already, that this was the battle that Marine Dakota Meyer participated in and received the Medal of Honor for. So it is cool to see exactly what went down that day in the form of a video simulation.
As to my comments on the battle? I think the lessons learned posted at the end say it all. Also, from a private military point of view, you can see how important it is for everyone involved in the machine to be on the same sheet of music and to have excellent intelligence to make good plans.
Also, you can see how vital support was to this task force of Marines, Afghan soldiers, and Army. To be able to support your operations versus depending on someone else to arrange that support or give that is the ultimate in self-sufficiency and mobility. Having their own mortars to provide their own organic fire support, or even having drones like the Switchblade would have been nice to have.
Just look at what happens when you have to depend upon a command post operations center that was incompetent or too bureaucratic/inefficient to support a task force like this? Or look what happens when they are overwhelmed or understaffed?
Another point I wanted to make is Incident Command versus what the military tries to do in war. I think the military could learn from forest fire fighting dispatching centers. They are fast paced, chaotic, and people depend upon a dispatcher’s quick decision making to support fire fighting.
When I was a forest fire fighter back in the day, I got a chance to be a dispatcher. Decisions made in the dispatch center saved lives and property, and we supported operations during times of normal fire activity, all the way up to ‘the entire world was on fire and pure chaos was the result’. lol It is a tough job, and mentally you will be pushed. (it is a multi-tasker’s profession, and women do well at it)
As a dispatcher, you have to understand the needs of those in the field, and bend over backwards to ensure they are supported for their fight. You must be able to operate like this, at all times and in all conditions, and get it right every time. Incident Command is a key command system that makes this work. So when I view how this command post operations center operated in this battle, I have to shake my head in disbelief.
Another thing with dispatching is that highly experienced forest fire fighters were very nice to have in these centers, just because they could interpret the events happening out in the field, and help devise better plans of support. That they could share the reality of the folks out in the field, far better than a dispatcher that has never been out in the field. That’s not to say that dispatchers without fire fighting experience are not good–it’s just they do not have the same ‘orientation’ as experienced fire fighters. (OODA totally applies to this battle, and fire fighting/dispatching)
Although, both types of dispatchers helped tremendously. Two different types of orientation, all contributing to a fast paced decision making environment… I think military folks could learn a few things from these centers.
Also, the company that produced this video put together some fantastic training videos on squad movements and other infantry related skills. Either way, check it out and let me know what you think? –Matt
In this undated photo released by the U.S. Marines, Sgt. Dakota Meyer poses for a photo while deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Ganjgal Village, Kunar province, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/U.S. Marines)
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“We are taking the best gear, the best technology on the market to date and giving it to guys known to stab us in the back,” Sgt. Meyer wrote to Mr. McCreight, according to the lawsuit. “These are the same people killing our guys.” While in the Marines, Sgt. Meyer had served along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Many in the military who have served on the border have said in interviews they view Pakistan as an unreliable ally, as likely to help Taliban insurgents as they are to aid American troops.
Wow, Smedley Butler eat your heart out. lol Although in this case, this is pretty common with contracting. Guys sue their former employers, bosses, and coworkers all the time–some with success, and some without. Although in Dakota’s case, he has a lot of visibility and celebrity backing him up. I would imagine a pretty solid law firm has backed him up as well, just because of that celebrity and visibility.
The other thing that needs to be mentioned is that Dakota is a contractor and is very much a part of this industry. That’s cool and I hope Dakota is able to use his celebrity to promote good leadership and work ethic within this industry. If anyone has anything to add to this story, please feel free to do so in the comments section below. –Matt
Edit: 12/16/2011- Well it looks like BAE and Dakota settled. Here is a quote from CNN about what the settlement said. No word on any monetary settlement.
“BAE Systems OASYS and I have settled our differences amicably,” Meyer said in a joint statement issued by the company, referring to the company by its full name. Meyer praised the defense firm’s support for veterans and generosity to the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation. There were no details of any possible monetary settlement. “During my time there I became concerned about the possible sale of advanced thermal scopes to Pakistan. I expressed my concerns directly and respectfully,” Meyer said. “I am gratified to learn that BAE Systems OASYS did not ultimately sell and does not intend to sell advanced thermal scopes to Pakistan.”
Decorated Marine Sues Contractor
NOVEMBER 29, 2011
By JULIAN E. BARNES
Two months ago, Dakota Meyer was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama for his service in Afghanistan, the military’s most prestigious award. On Monday, Sgt. Meyer alleged that a defense contractor has called him mentally unstable and a problem drinker, ruining his chances for a job in the defense industry.
Sgt. Dakota Meyer alleges BAE Systems blocked him from a defense-industry job by claiming he is mentally unstable and has a drinking problem.
In legal papers filed Monday, the Marine claims that BAE Systems, where he worked earlier this year, retaliated against him after he raised objections about BAE’s alleged decision to sell high-tech sniper scopes to the Pakistani military. He says his supervisor at BAE effectively blocked his hiring by another defense contractor by making the claims about drinking and his mental condition.
Sgt. Meyer’s complaint is likely to pose a more difficult challenge for BAE, a British company with extensive U.S. operations, than a typical employment dispute. In the September White House ceremony, Sgt. Meyer was hailed for braving enemy fire as he tried to save the lives of fellow Marines who had been trapped in a Taliban ambush.
BAE said it would defend itself, but comments by BAE officials Monday made clear they don’t want to be seen as denigrating a Medal of Honor recipient. “Although we strongly disagree with his claims, which we will address through the appropriate legal process, we wish him success and good fortune in his endeavors,” said Brian J. Roehrkasse, a BAE spokesman. He declined to discuss any specifics of the suit.
Through a lawyer, Sgt. Meyer declined to comment on his suit. Representatives of the Pentagon and Marine Corps said they weren’t aware of the suit.
Outstanding news and I am glad to see Dakota be recognized for his actions. I was also interested in his statement about what he has been up to since he has left the Marines. In this video below, he mentioned that he was contracting? Very cool and I certainly hope that whatever company he is working for, is doing a good job at taking care of him and his co-workers? Because if said company has been poorly treating this Marine and his co-workers, you are soon to get a whole bunch of negative attention and press placed on how poorly you treated a national hero. Not that this is the case, but I figured I would mention this just as a reminder of why ‘taking care of your people’ is one of the best business practices out there. Semper Fi. –Matt
Edit: Hey, thanks to Federico on FB for sending me this link. I guess Dakota works at Ausgar Technologies.
Meyer took a job with Ausgar Technologies, a military contractor based in San Diego. He travels from Kentucky to bases across the U.S., spending most of his time training snipers on optics. Meyer said he sometimes thinks about re-enlisting, but thinks better of it because he has a supportive girlfriend who has read all the investigative reports and saw “the aftermath” of his deployment. “I don’t know if I’d want to do that to her,” he said. “It’s hard to find a girlfriend who can put up with waking up in the middle of the night the way I do sometimes.”
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