COMBAT STORIES FROM Afghanistan

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Showing : Afghanistan Videos

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  Brandon Dodson - Marines +12 Total Videos

  1st Battalion, 7th Marines

  It was a totally different war in Afghanistan. Brandon Dodson had two tours in Iraq but this fight was more unnerving. IED's were a big problem and it became a cat and mouse game of design vs. detection. (Caution: strong language)

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  Shawn Patrick - Marines +11 Total Videos

  Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC)

  While recovering from the wound he received in Iraq, Recon Marine Shawn Patrick became an instructor at the Amphibious Reconnaissance School. After a few years there he joined the new Marine Forces Special Operations Command or MARSOC. There he helped the new organization determine it's structure and begin operations. He got to know Afghanistan way too well.

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  It was July 4, 2010 when the patrol went out from their outpost in Afghanistan to set up an overwatch. Mortarman Colin Colquhoun needed somebody to carry some extra rounds so he took a newly arrived soldier named Clay McGarrah with him. (Caution: strong language)

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  Brandon Dodson - Marines +12 Total Videos

  1st Battalion, 7th Marines

  It was at the end of his second tour in Afghanistan on the very last mission the Marine unit had before they were packing up to leave. Brandon Dodson stepped on an IED which gave him some devastating injuries. He was the squad leader so he kept trying to stand up until the Corpsman handed him something that put an end to that. (Caution: graphic material and strong language)

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  One of James Ferguson's squad leaders was a Marine that everyone in the unit looked up to, a mentor and a natural leader. One night, they were setting up a two pronged ambush when a huge blast shook the earth. That Marine was mortally wounded and still continued to direct his squad.

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  Patty Justice - Army +4 Total Videos

  7303rd Medical Training Support Battalion, 1st Medical Training Brigade

  Justice details a too-close-for-comfort interaction with a vehicle-borne IED. The IED came as a complete surprise and the entire F.O.B. fell into what Justice could only describe as “chaos” immediately following the explosion. She suffered several injuries and had to work with the nurses back in Bagram and depend on the friendship of comrade Colonel Ellison to come back from the injuries.

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  It was basic training and then Airborne school and then Ranger Indoctrination. Was it too much, too quick? Dan Myers didn't make it through the Ranger program after a little trouble with the PT test so no Ranger Battalion for him. It was off to the 82nd Airborne. (Caution: strong language)

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Colin Colquhoun tells the tale of a special care package one of the men received from his wife containing an intimate personal item. That was a little needed comedic relief but when his unit returned from Afghanistan and he slowed down a little, he realized something was wrong. He'd changed.

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  It was muscle memory a lot of the time. The patrols were mostly forgettable but there was one day that was very memorable to Dan Myers. His platoon went to help another one that was in contact and it stretched into an epic day that ended with a frantic scramble to find three missing men. (Caution: strong language)

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  It started off slowly but as the calendar moved into spring the fighting season was on. Colin Colquhoun recalls his first firefight with the Taliban which escalated from one squad to the whole company engaged. When he prepared to fire his mortar he made a rookie mistake that could have been costly. (Caution: strong language)

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  It was winter when Dan Myers got to Afghanistan. This was good because there was a fighting season and it didn't kick off until spring. This gave the unit time to build up their outpost and get familiar with the area.

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  Andrew Samuelson - Army +5 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  They tried to advise the unit that was replacing them but the new guys weren't listening. On his way out of the base as he was heading home, Andrew Samuelson recalls the look of sheer terror in a young private's face.

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  He was only in the sixth grade at the time but the day of 9/11 stuck with him throughout the rest of his childhood. As soon as he graduated high school, Colin Colquhoun joined the Army ready to do his part.

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  Andrew Samuelson - Army +5 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Why not join the Army? Andrew Samuelson was looking at a buddy who was in ROTC and the thought popped into his head. He acted on it and was soon on his way to basic training.

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  It looked like Mexico to him. Dan Myers was from southern California and he noticed that right away when he got to Afghanistan. After an eighteen hour drive he arrived at the combat outpost that was to be home to his unit. He was struck by the beauty of the place. (Caution: strong language)

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  After a lot of training, Colin Colquhoun was feeling kind of cocky but when he got to the 82nd, he was just a new guy. The battalion was destined for Iraq but a changing situation in Afghanistan rerouted them there. At first they were spread out all over the place but finally the whole battalion was gathered in the Arghandab Valley. (Caution: strong language)

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Dan Myers was anxious to get out of the house. College was not to his liking so he asked a couple of buddies about enlisting. They were interested and they all went to see the recruiter but he was the only one who followed through. (Caution: strong language)

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  Andrew Samuelson - Army +5 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  The Rules of Engagement were onerous in Afghanistan. Andrew Samuelson wonders why he wasn't allowed to shoot obvious enemy combatants. That's not how you win a war.

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  There were good reasons to go to war in Afghanistan but then the mission creep set in. Colin Colquhoun laments how we lost our way there. He did his part and he loves getting together with his buddies to keep the brotherhood alive.

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Coming home after the deployment? It was really weird. Driving was a whole new experience for Dan Myers as he anxiously scanned the other cars around him. And he was sure his family was looking at him differently. But he now had a lifetime bond that could be revisited at reunions of his unit.

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Mortarman Colin Colquhoun used both high explosive and white phosphorus rounds. The HE rounds were handy for punching through the roof on a tough Afghan building and the smoke rounds were good for marking targets for the helicopter gunships. The pilots were from the 82nd Airborne just like the troops so they would go the extra mile.

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  Andrew Samuelson - Army +5 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Andrew Samuelson was on the advance team that went to Afghanistan to prep for the arrival of the full battalion. They immediately discovered that the Army didn't really have a mission for them. After a couple of quick support missions for other units, it was decided that they would be the Quick Reaction Force for a large area.

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  His platoon had been designated the Quick Reaction Force for half the country. Dan Myers was sent to Badghis Province to set up security for a recovery operation. Loaded down with all his gear, he stepped off the chopper and rolled his ankle. A lot of frustration followed as his buddies went off to fight the Taliban. (Caution: strong language)

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  Andrew Samuelson - Army +5 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  It was a simple task that would last a few hours but Andrew Samuelson's platoon stayed for 45 days beside that river. They were there to provide security while divers searched for the bodies of two drowned Americans. The Taliban sensed an opportunity.

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  Colin Colquhoun - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  When it was time to rotate out of Afghanistan, for some reason, the Army sent an artillery unit to replace Colin Colquhoun's infantry unit. They were totally unprepared. Someone up the chain had messed up.

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  Andrew Samuelson - Army +5 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Many of the Taliban would go to Pakistan for the winter but they returned in the spring and the fighting would begin again. This year they had their eyes on Kandahar city and Andrew Samuelson's unit was blocking the way.

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  Dan Myers - Army +7 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

  Was it all for nothing? No. Though it ended badly, the men who fought in Afghanistan were there for each other and not for any geopolitical goal. Dan Myers is a better man today because of his experiences there. (Caution: strong language)

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  Brandon Dodson - Marines +12 Total Videos

  1st Battalion, 7th Marines

  The early days of Operation Iraqi Freedom were very rewarding for Brandon Dodson. 9/11 was fresh in his mind and the enemies were authentic bad guys who needed killing. Over the long haul, that naivete would wear down. It is also very rewarding and therapeutic to reunite with his comrades from those days. (Caution: strong language)

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  Shawn Patrick - Marines +11 Total Videos

  Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC)

  As a Recon Marine, Shawn Patrick had worked in five man teams and it started out that way when he joined the newly formed MARSOC, the Marine Forces Special Operations Command. The new organization went to fourteen man teams and deployed that way to Afghanistan, where growing a beard became an issue.

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  Brandon Dodson - Marines +12 Total Videos

  1st Battalion, 7th Marines

  The hardest part of his recovery for Brandon Dodson was dealing with his young son. He was frightened of dad and all his medical stuff and his wheelchair. It was a long road back from the battlefield but, eventually, he was fitted with good prosthetics and got back to some kind of decent life. (Caution: graphic material and strong language)