15 - Extract

So I always so nothing interesting happens. Well how 'bout this one.

We were executing the extraction portion of a Raid we had done. What's a Raid? Well, basically an Infantry unit comes to us and says we want you to drop us off right here using your helicopters. There are bad guys in the buildings surrounding these fields and helicopters coming in quickly when it's night time is the best way to get 'em. We say OK, here's how we'll do it. Then all sorts of other units want to play as well. Like attack helicopters and airplanes and jets. They all want to watch and observe and stand ready in case something bad happens during the Raid.

Anyway, we were executing the extraction portion of the Raid, an earlier night we'd dropped the guys off, they Raid-ed, and now it was time to get picked up. A couple of our helicopters were picking guys up from one LZ and a couple were going to another one. As the first helicopters broke out of our formation to land in the first LZ, we passed around them and continued on. Out of the corner of my eye I could see them making their approach into the small, dusty field. As they were about 50 feet off the ground, something exploded right near their landing area. We continued on to our LZ as the radios started to go crazy. Everyone above us wanted to know what was going on. As we were coming into our field, I heard the first report of 5 casualties, 2 urgent, 3 serious. The first thing that flashed through my mind was 5 casulties and 5 crew members per aircraft. With the luck we've had this deployment, I couldn't help but think something very bad had happened to us again.

As it turned out, none of our guys were injured. But that can't be said for the unit we were extracting. Speculation is that during their Raid they came across an enemy's cache of weapons and explosives. They had some explosives in a backpack and as they were huddled waiting for our helicopter to land, the static electricity put off by the helicopter blades ignited whatever was in that bag. The poor dude wearing the pack pretty much got annihilated. The guys who were flying it said there was blood all over the side of the helicopter and on the rotor blades. All the windows on one side blew out, even the chin bubble window on the front. Once they landed, they got all the injured guys on and took off for the nearest hospital. There are eerie stories coming out of this, ones you read about in war books but don't think you'll ever experience. Like one crew chief was handed a garbage bag by a medic with a leg in it. As far as I know now, there was one KIA and 10 wounded.

Not quite sure what to make of that night. A little bit of bad luck, I suppose. Seems to be our theme this time round.