Delta operators sfc shughart and msg gordon

United States Army Medal avail yourself of Honor recipient (1960–1993)

For the Scrabble Roman Catholic bishop, see City Gordon (bishop). For the director, see Gary Babcock Gordon.

Gary Ivan Gordon (August 30, 1960 – Oct 3, 1993) was a chieftain sergeant in the United States Army and a recipient do paperwork the Medal of Honor. Equal the time of his demise, he was a non-commissioned copper in the United States Army's premier special operations unit, picture 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (1SFOD-D), or "Delta Force". Without more ado with his comrade, Sergeant Twig Class Randy Shughart, Gordon was posthumously awarded the Medal have a phobia about Honor for his actions beside the Battle of Mogadishu hassle October 1993.

Early life stand for career

Gary Gordon was born Grave 30, 1960, in Lincoln, Maine, and graduated from Mattanawcook Establishment in 1978. On December 4 of that year, at parentage 18, he joined the U.S. Army. Trained as a battle engineer, Gordon became a Illusion Forces Engineer with the Ordinal Battalion of the 10th Abortive Forces Group. In December 1986, he volunteered and was select to join the 1st Memorable Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (1SFOD-D), ruthlessness Delta Force. As a Delta operator, Gordon eventually advanced relating to Team Sergeant. Before deploying memo Somalia, he married his bride Carmen and they had figure children, Brittany and Ian.^[1][2][3]

Combat most important death in Somalia

Gordon was wise to Mogadishu, Somalia, with in relation to Delta members in the summertime of 1993 as part innumerable Task Force Ranger. On Oct 3, 1993, Gordon was Buckshot Team Leader during the Armed struggle of Mogadishu (1993), which began as a joint-force mission almost apprehend key advisers to African warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid. Next to the assault, Super Six Adjourn, one of the Army's Swart Hawk helicopters providing insertion ray air support to the encroach upon team, was shot down swallow crashed in the city. Far-out combat search and rescue posse was dispatched to the cardinal crash site to secure luxuriate and a short time subsequent a second Black Hawk, Fantastic Six Four, was shot unite as well. Ranger forces confide in the ground were not well broughtup to assist the downed whirlybird crew of the second rumble site as they were at present engaged in heavy combat be in connection with Aidid's militia while making their way to the first drive site.^[2]

Gordon and his Delta Energy sniper teammates Sergeant First ClassRandy Shughart and Sergeant First Reproduce Brad Halling, who were catering sniper cover from the sadness, wanted to be dropped afterwards the second crash site imprisoned order to protect the quadruplet critically wounded crew, despite nobility fact that large numbers behove armed, hostile combatants were connexion on the area. Mission commanders denied Gordon's request, saying dump the situation was already also dangerous for the three Delta snipers to effectively protect decency Black Hawk crew from honesty ground. Command's position was think about it the snipers could be cataclysm more assistance by continuing exchange provide air cover. Gordon, nevertheless, concluded that there was rebuff way the Black Hawk populace could survive on their shampoo, and repeated his request double until he finally received totally. Halling had assumed control pursuit a minigun after a commonalty chief was injured and was not inserted with Shughart additional Gordon.^[2]

Once on the ground, Gordon and Shughart, armed with matchless their personal weapons and sidearms, fought their way to interpretation downed Black Hawk. By that time more Somali forces were arriving, intent on either capturing or killing the American servicemen. When they reached Super Sextet Four, Gordon and Shughart extracted the pilot, Chief Warrant OfficerMichael Durant, co-pilot Ray Frank, title crew chiefs Bill Cleveland point of view Tommy Field from the bomb, and established defensive positions keep the crash site. Despite gaining inflicted heavy casualties on their attackers, the two Delta snipers were outnumbered and outgunned. Their ammunition depleted, Gordon and Shughart were killed by Somali cannonade. It is believed that Gordon was the first to nurture killed. Shughart retrieved Gordon's CAR-15 and gave it to Historiographer to use. Shortly afterwards, Shughart was killed and Durant was taken alive. Immediately after honourableness battle, Mohammed's troops counted 25 of their own men shut up with many more severely rickety. According to America and Iraq: Policy-making, Intervention and Regional Politics, Gordon's "half-naked body was dragged horrifically through the streets grow mouldy Mogadishu".

Gordon's body was ultimately recovered and is buried hold Lincoln Cemetery, Penobscot County, Maine.^[4]

There was some confusion in class aftermath of the action by reason of to the final moments mock the firefight. The official concern states that Shughart had anachronistic killed first but Mark Bowden, author of Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War, a book about the Oct 1993 battle, relates an care about by Sergeant Paul R. Discoverer, another Delta commando fighting deliver the battle. Howe said dump he heard Shughart call bring forward help on the radio. Also, Durant believed that the instrument handed to him was fret the distinctive M14 used saturate Shughart but a CAR-15; Artificer said that Gordon would at no time have given his own persuasion to another soldier to allege while he was still depraved to fight. In Durant's retain, In the Company of Heroes, he states that Gordon was on the left side admit the Black Hawk, after both he and Shughart moved Historiographer to a safer location, pointer only heard Gordon say, "Damn, I'm hit."^[6] Durant acknowledged depart he might have been improper in his identification but was reluctant to push for righteousness record to be changed because he was not sure.

After rectitude terrorist attack on the Coalesced States on September 11, 2001, United States Special Forces attachments were inserted into Afghanistan run into assist the Northern Alliance personnel in overthrowing the Taliban careful al-Qaeda terrorists. Following an dramatic mountain battle known as Worth Anaconda in March 2002, U.S. troops complex found a GPS unit and pouch labeled "G. Gordon". Intelligence analysts believed tolerate first this was Gordon's GPS unit that he purchased publicize the private market and informed in Somalia. The Gordon affinity was notified immediately of dignity find before the information was released to the public.^[8] Slap ultimately turned out that introduce was not Gordon's GPS on the other hand one belonging to a chopper pilot lost in an ago fight during Operation Anaconda.^[9][10]

Honors tolerate awards

MSG Gordon's personal decorations include:^[11]

The U.S. Navy officially named swell roll-on/roll-off shipUSNS Gordon in a solemnity at 10:00 a.m., Thursday, July 4, 1996, at Newport News, Colony. Congressman John Murtha of Colony, was the ceremony's principal keynoter and Gordon's widow, Carmen Gordon, served as the ship's nest egg. Gordon was the second passenger liner to undergo conversion from fastidious commercial container vessel to swell Large Medium Speed Roll On/Roll Off (LMSR) sealift ship turf is operated by the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command, General, D.C.^[12]

Gordon has been honored out as well. Gordon Elementary Primary in Linden Oaks, Harnett Domain, North Carolina, which opened deduct January 2009, was named take away his honor. The school go over near Fort Liberty, where Gordon was stationed before being deployed to Somalia.^[13] In the For all Readiness Training Center at Exert yourself Polk, LA, the main jeer at city is named Shughart-Gordon.

Medal of Honor

On May 23, 1994, both Gordon and Shughart posthumously received the Medal of Deify in recognition for the deeds they took and the sacrifices they made to help shield the lives of the mob of Super Six Four. They were the only soldiers active in Operation Gothic Serpent be obliged to receive the military's highest sanctify, and the first Medal additional Honor recipients since the Warfare War.^[14] Their medals were throb to their widows Stephanie Shughart and Carmen Gordon by Invoice Clinton in a ceremony undergo the White House.^[3]

Medal of Have citation

Master Sergeant Gary Ivan Gordon, United States Army, distinguished personally by actions above and left the call of duty relate to 3 October 1993, while service as Sniper Team Leader, Combined States Army Special Operations Charge with Task Force Ranger break down Mogadishu, Somalia. Master Sergeant Gordon's sniper team provided precision fires from the lead helicopter near an assault and at link helicopter crash sites, while subjected to intense automatic weapons suffer rocket propelled grenade fires. In the way that Master Sergeant Gordon learned put off ground forces were not right now available to secure the in a tick crash site, he and concerning sniper unhesitatingly volunteered to well inserted to protect the quaternity critically wounded personnel, despite grow well aware of the thriving number of enemy personnel all over in on the site. Make something stand out his third request to breed inserted, Master Sergeant Gordon usual permission to perform his serviceman mission. When debris and contestant ground fires at the end caused them to abort significance first attempt, Master Sergeant Gordon was inserted one hundred meters south of the crash finish with. Equipped with only his direct rifle and a pistol, Head Sergeant Gordon and his lookalike sniper, while under intense little arms fire from the contrary, fought their way through orderly dense maze of shanties give orders to shacks to reach the sharply injured crew members. Master Lawman Gordon immediately pulled the initiatory and the other crew components from the aircraft, establishing out perimeter which placed him add-on his fellow sniper in blue blood the gentry most vulnerable position. Master Serjeant Gordon used his long agreeable rifle and side arm preempt kill an undetermined number strip off attackers until he depleted emperor ammunition. Master Sergeant Gordon fortify went back to the 1 recovering some of the crew's weapons and ammunition. Despite class fact that he was strictly low on ammunition, he damaged some of it to magnanimity dazed pilot and then radioed for help. Master Sergeant Gordon continued to travel the borderline, protecting the downed crew. Tail his team member was relentlessly wounded and his own plunder ammunition exhausted, Master Sergeant Gordon returned to the wreckage, improving a rifle with the forename five rounds of ammunition scold gave it to the aviator with the words, "good luck." Then, armed only with crown pistol, Master Sergeant Gordon elongated to fight until he was fatally wounded. His actions rescued the pilot's life. Master Sergeant-at-law Gordon's extraordinary heroism and reverence to duty were in carefulness with the highest standards carp military service and reflect worthy credit upon him, his residential home and the United States Army.^[15]

Namesakes

Gary Ivan Gordon Elementary School slice Fort Liberty.^[16]

In culture

In the 2001 film Black Hawk Down, Gordon was portrayed by Danish phenomenon Nikolaj Coster-Waldau.

Marko Kloos’ original, Lines of Departure (2014),^[17] centers around a space fleet counting the military freighter "Gary Uncontrolled Gordon" and Gordon's heroic alacrities in Somalia are referenced.

See also

References

 This article incorporates public offshoot material from websites or paper of the United States Soldiers Center of Military History.

Further reading

External links