Desert Storm and Forward

Assimilation back into the civilian world proved a challenge for Ranger Medic Leo Jenkins. After submitting over 160 applications with only one call back, Leo says he officially became a "disgruntled Veteran". He fell into a deep fissure. The frustration of transition is best exemplified by the college that insisted he take a basic first aid course because his Ranger Medic qualifications "..didn't count because he did it in the military." A call from fellow Ranger Marty Skovlund led Leo [...]

U.S. Army Captain Michael Kelvington Army Major Mike Kelvington needs help to Save Dave.  An Afghan who served as Kelvington’ s linguist and cultural advisor, this young man faced IED’s and hostile fire right alongside our troops.  The same as he had done for other US military commanders before Major Kelvington. When the US entered conflict in Afghanistan, there was a steep learning curve. Trusted local advisors and translators were needed.  Thousands of Afghans stepped up to fulfill [...]

Photo Credit: Matthew McKee F-35 A Heritage Flight Pilot Major William "D-Rail" Andreaotta describes what it is like to fly one of the most advanced fighter aircraft in the world. He is based at Luke Air Force Base in Phoenix. Luke has been designated a training base for both US forces and allied nations that will be flying this aircraft. He spent the majority of his career flying the F-16 before transferring to the F-35 program. Davis Monthan [...]

Credit: US Air Force Did you know the FIRST military helicopter rescue mission took place in World War II? It was flown by an Air Commando. How can you not love a unit that began by being told by their Commander “..to hell with paperwork – go out and FIGHT!” Col. Brenda Cartier - Vice Commander, Air Force Special Operations Warfare Center shares some insights into this special group and talks about one of my favorite airplanes - [...]

“Tyler Mack” spent 10 years in the US Army, five as a member of the elite Green Berets.  As a member of the elite 3rd Special Forces Group he had two deployments to Iraq and one deployment to Afghanistan.  Due to the nature of his service, he appears on American Warrior and Havok Journal under an assumed name. He discusses the subject of the things he carried while an officer with the Green Berets and the things that carried him [...]

Sebastian Junger never wore the uniform but he HAS seen war up close.  As an award winning journalist and special correspondent at ABC news, he has covered many conflicts. His documentary “Restrepo” about his time embedded with a US Army unit in the Korengal valley of Afghanistan was nominated for an Academy Award and won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. His other film credits include “Korengal” and “Which Way is the Front Line From Here?” Junger [...]

Jeff Struecker was a 24 year old sergeant and member of one of our nation’s most elite fighting forces. In 1993 he was assigned to Task Force Ranger in Mogadishu as part of the 75th Ranger Regiment.  He participated in the Battle of Mogadishu, dramatized on the big screen in the movie “Blackhawk Down.”  Struecker led the three vehicle convoy that returned wounded Ranger Pvt. Todd Blackburn to base through intense fire. In was in his Humvee that the first [...]

Army Ranger Marty Skovlund discusses the 75th Army Regiment and its' role in the war on terror. Marty is Founder of The Havok Journal and Author of "Violence of Action; The Untold Stories of the 75th Ranger Regiment in the War on Terror"

Debecka Pass was a historic battle by many standards. Some even call it "The Alamo" of the Iraq War. In what is now considered by many a pivotal point in modern combat, two Green Beret A-Teams and their Peshmerga allies were confronted by a significantly larger force of tanks and armored vehicles. Superior tactics - and the first battlefield use of the Javelin anti-tank missile resulted in a victory for the US forces. Frank Antenori was a member of one [...]