Gary Ivan Gordon was a master sergeant in the United States Army and a recipient of the Medal of Honor. At the time of his death, he was a non-commissioned officer in the United States Army's premier special operations unit, the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (1SFOD-D), or "Delta Force". Together with his comrade, Sergeant First Class Randy Shughart, Gordon was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Mogadishu in October 1993.
Randall David Shughart was a United States Army Delta Force operator who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Mogadishu, during Operation Gothic Serpent in October 1993.
Black Hawk Down is a 2001 war film directed and produced by Ridley Scott, and co-produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, from a screenplay by Ken Nolan. It is based on the 1999 non-fiction book of the same name by journalist Mark Bowden, about the U.S. military's 1993 raid in Mogadishu and a Black Hawk helicopter that went down in enemy territory. The film features a large ensemble cast, including Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, Eric Bana, Tom Sizemore, William Fichtner, Jason Isaacs, Sam Shepard, Jeremy Piven, Ioan Gruffudd, Ewen Bremner, Hugh Dancy, and Tom Hardy in his first film role. Orlando Bloom, Ty Burrell, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau also have minor roles.
The Battle of Mogadishu, also known as the Black Hawk Down incident, was part of Operation Gothic Serpent. It was fought on 3–4 October 1993, in Mogadishu, Somalia, between forces of the United States—supported by UNOSOM II—against the forces of the Somali National Alliance (SNA) and armed irregular citizens of south Mogadishu.
Fayetteville is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Liberty, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city.
Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg, is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 29,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cumberland and Hoke counties, and borders the towns of Fayetteville, Spring Lake, and Southern Pines.
The United States invasion of Grenada began at dawn on 25 October 1983. The United States and a coalition of six Caribbean nations invaded the island nation of Grenada, 100 miles (160 km) north of Venezuela. Codenamed Operation Urgent Fury by the U.S. military, it resulted in military occupation within a few days. It was triggered by the strife within the People's Revolutionary Government, which resulted in the house arrest and execution of the previous leader and second Prime Minister of Grenada, Maurice Bishop, and the establishment of the Revolutionary Military Council, with Hudson Austin as chairman. The invasion resulted in the appointment of an interim government, followed by elections in 1984.
The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), abbreviated as 160th SOAR (A), is a special operations force of the United States Army that provides helicopter aviation support for special operations forces. Its missions have included attack, assault, and reconnaissance, and these missions are usually conducted at night, at high speeds, low altitudes, and on short notice.
Operation Gothic Serpent was a military operation conducted in Mogadishu, Somalia, by an American force code-named Task Force Ranger during the Somali Civil War in 1993. The primary objective of the operation was to capture Mohamed Farrah Aidid, leader of the Somali National Alliance who was wanted by the UNOSOM II in response to his attacks against United Nations troops. The operation took place from August to October 1993 and was led by US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC).
William F. "Bill" Garrison is a retired major general of the United States Army who commanded United States forces during Operation Gothic Serpent, the military operation launched in 1993 to capture Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid.
Iron Mike is the de facto name of various monuments commemorating servicemen of the United States military. The term "Iron Mike" is uniquely American slang used to refer to men who are especially tough, brave, and inspiring; it was originally a nautical term for a gyrocompass, used to keep a ship on an unwavering course. Because the use of the slang term was popular in the first half of the 20th century, many statues from that period acquired the Iron Mike nickname, and over the generations the artists' titles were largely forgotten. Even official military publications and classroom texts tend to prefer the nickname to the original titles.
Michael Dane Steele is a retired colonel of the United States Army. He was a company commander in the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment during the Battle of Mogadishu (1993) in Somalia during Operation Gothic Serpent, which resulted in the now famous book and film Black Hawk Down, wherein he was portrayed by actor Jason Isaacs. He briefly appears in the documentary I Am an American Soldier.
Wayne Allan Downing was a four-star United States Army general born in Peoria, Illinois. He graduated from the United States Military Academy with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1962 and held a Master of Business Administration degree from Tulane University. He also served on the board of directors at a private military company, Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC).
Kenneth Mervyn Thomas is an American country music singer and former United States Army Ranger. Thomas was deployed in support of Operation Restore Hope as a member of Task Force Ranger in Somalia, and served in the Battle of Mogadishu. Thomas works as a motivational speaker drawing from this experience as an Army Ranger.
The 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) (10th SFG (A), or 10th Group) is an active duty United States Army Special Forces (SF) Group. 10th Group is designed to deploy and execute nine doctrinal missions: unconventional warfare (UW), foreign internal defense (FID), direct action (DA), counterinsurgency, special reconnaissance, counterterrorism, information operations, counter-proliferation of weapon of mass destruction, and security force assistance. 10th Group is responsible for operations within the EUCOM area of responsibility, as part of Special Operations Command Europe (SOCEUR).
The 1st Ranger Infantry Company (Airborne) was a Ranger light infantry company of the United States Army active during the Korean War. As a small special forces unit, it specialized in irregular warfare.
The 3rd Ranger Infantry Company (Airborne) was a Ranger light infantry company of the United States Army active during the Korean War. As a small special forces unit, it specialized in irregular warfare.
Michael Xavier Garrett is a retired general in the United States Army who served as the commanding general of United States Army Forces Command from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as the commanding general of United States Army Central, chief of staff of United States Central Command and commanding general of United States Army Alaska.
Danny R. McKnight is an American retired colonel who served in the United States Army. He is best known for his role as commander of the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment in the Battle of Mogadishu. His participation in the battle was also heavily portrayed in the film Black Hawk Down, where his role was played by Tom Sizemore.
Thomas E. Matthews is a retired United States Army colonel who is best known for his commanding role in the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993. During the Battle of Mogadishu, Matthews and a Delta Force officer, Lt. Col. Gary Harrell commanded from the helicopter Super 6-3 circling over the battle. Matthews was the commander of 1st Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), of which 5 members of his unit were killed when two Black Hawk Helicopters were shot down by the forces of Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid. Matthews was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal by President Bill Clinton for his actions in Somalia. Matthews was an adviser for the movie Black Hawk Down about the Battle of Mogadishu and was portrayed in the movie by Glenn Morshower. Matthews later retired from military service and works in the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Department of Defense. He currently resides in northern Virginia with his family.
