LIEUTENANT Colonel Pete Blaber—The Delta Force officer who commanded AFO and believed in “Patton’s three principles of war—audacity, audacity, and audacity.”
Technical Sergeant John Chapman—The Air Force NCO who accompanied Mako 30 into combat on Takur Ghar.
Major General Dell Dailey—The head of Joint Special Operations Command. A special operations aviation officer, he was opposed to AFO’s involvement in Anaconda.
Major General Warren Edwards—The Army officer who was deputy commanding general for operations at Coalition Forces Land Component Command.
General Tommy Franks—The commander of U.S. Central Command.
Command Sergeant Major Frank Grippe—The tall, jut-jawed infantryman who was the top NCO in 1-87 Infantry.
Lieutenant Colonel Chris Haas—The highly-respected commander of 1st Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group, who formed a close-knit team in Gardez with Blaber and Spider.
Major General Franklin “Buster” Hagenbeck—The 10th Mountain Division commander in charge of all U.S. forces in Anaconda except for the JSOC/TF 11 elements.
Chief Warrant Officer 4 Jim Hardy—The experienced pilot who was the maintenance guru for the Apache helicopters that flew into the Shahikot Valley.
Brigadier General Gary Harrell—The former commander of Delta Force who Franks had placed at the head of Task Force Bowie, the intelligence “fusion cell” at Gardez.
Lieutenant Commander Vic Hyder—The SEAL officer sent by Trebon and Kernan to oversee the insertion of TF Blue elements into the Shahikot. Hyder’s recent history of poor judgment made him a dubious choice for the mission.
Major Jimmy—The Delta Force officer who was Blaber’s second-in-command in AFO and also functioned as Blaber’s liaison officer in the Mountain operations center.
Captain Joseph Kernan—The SEAL Team 6 and Task Force Blue commander. He had a reputation as one of the best swimmers in the Navy.
Lieutenant Colonel Paul LaCamera—The commander of 1-87 Infantry. His Ranger background gave him a bond with many of the other officers in Task Force Rakkasan.
Lieutenant Colonel Jim Larsen—The Task Force Rakkasan executive officer who represented Wiercinski in the early planning sessions at Bagram and Kabul.
Zia Lodin—The leader of the Afghan forces who fought on the Americans’ side in Anaconda.
Lieutenant General Paul Mikolashek—The Army officer who headed Coalition Forces Land Component Command.
Colonel John Mulholland—The 5th Special Forces Group commander who headed Task Force Dagger. His A-teams had helped the Northern Alliance to topple the Taliban.
Command Sergeant Major Mark Nielsen—The combat-focused senior NCO in 2-187 Infantry, who was viewed as a voice of common sense by the battalion’s soldiers.
Staff Sergeant Randel Perez—A 1-87 Infantry squad leader who had made the almost unheard-of switch to infantry from the supply corps because he wanted more of a challenge.
Lieutenant Colonel Charles “Chip” Preysler—The 2-187 Infantry commander who was the first field grade officer into the Shahikot.
Petty Officer First Class Neil Roberts—A SEAL NCO who was part of Task Force Blue’s Mako 30 reconnaissance team.
Staff Sergeant Andrzej Ropel—A 1-87 Infantry squad leader; a Polish immigrant fighting for a country of which he was not yet a citizen.
Lieutenant Colonel Mark Rosengard—The TF Dagger operations officer who combined a flamboyant bravado with a tremendous work ethic and an ability to inspire subordinates.
Captain Nathan Self—The commander of 1st Platoon, A Company, 1st Ranger Battalion—the TF 11 quick reaction force sent to the top of Takur Ghar mountain.
“Slab”—The SEAL senior chief petty officer who led Mako 30. Blaber had a high regard for Slab, whom he knew from their days in the Balkans together.
“Speedy”—The Delta Force master sergeant called Kevin W. who headed AFO’s India Team. His background as a triathlete and backwoods hunter gave him an edge in the Shahikot.
“Spider”—Also known as “the Wolf,” this CIA operative headed the agency’s operations in Gardez. Well known to Blaber, he proved an invaluable asset.
Captain Glenn Thomas—The leader of ODA 594, aka Texas 14; the first U.S. officer to venture into the Shahikot.
Brigadier General Gregory Trebon—The Air Force special operations officer who was Dailey’s deputy in JSOC, and who Dailey placed in command of TF 11.
Colonel Frank Wiercinski—The seasoned commander of Task Force Rakkasan.
Major Paul Wille—The lead planner for Task Force Mountain forced to design a plan based on the compromises reached between several different task forces.
GLOSSARY
AC-130—The gunship used by U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command and based on the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. The H-model of the AC-130 is called the Spectre. The newer U-model is called the Spooky.
AFO—Advance Force Operations, the “black” special operations outfit tasked with conducting high-risk reconnaissance missions in enemy-held territory.
AK-47—The Soviet-designed assault rifle ubiquitous in most guerrilla campaigns. More modern versions include the AKM and AKS. AK-style weapons are often referred to as “Kalashnikovs” after Mikhail Kalashnikov, who designed the original AK-47.
AMF—Afghan military forces or Afghan militia forces, the terms applied to the Afghan fighters who allied themselves with the United States in the fight against Al Qaida and the Taliban.
AOB—Advanced operating base, where a Special Forces company makes its headquarters in the field.
CAOC—Combined Air Operations Center; collocated with Moseley’s CFACC headquarters at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, the CAOC was where air support for the war in Afghanistan was coordinated.
CENTCOM—U.S. Central Command, the four-star headquarters commanded by General Tommy Franks that had charge of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan, Central Asia and the Middle East (minus Israel).
CFACC—Coalition Forces Air Component Command, the three-star headquarters commanded by Air Force Lieutenant General T. Michael “Buzz” Moseley that ran U.S. and coalition air missions in the CENTCOM area of responsibility, including Afghanistan.
CFLCC—Coalition Forces Land Component Command, the three-star headquarters commanded by Army Lieutenant General Paul Mikolashek that was located in Kuwait and controlled all U.S. and allied conventional and “white” special operations forces in the CENTCOM area of responsibility, including Afghanistan.
CinC—Commander-in-chief, the phrase used to refer to the four-star flag officers who head up each of the Pentagon’s regional commands. Tommy Franks was a CinC. (Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld banned the use of the phrase “commander-in-chief” in this context, however, and ordered the military to instead use the words “combatant commander.”)
ETAC—Enlisted tactical air controller, the airman who accompanies a ground unit into battle and is responsible for calling in close air support for that unit.
FARP—Forward arming and refueling point; a spot where helicopters can refuel and rearm in relative safety without having to fly all the way back to the air base from which they launched. During Anaconda the FARP was code-named Texaco.
GPS—Global Positioning System; the satellite system that provided U.S. forces with accurate data on their exact location.
HUMINT—Human intelligence, gained through old-fashioned spying such as paying people for information, as distinct from intelligence gained via overhead imaging systems or high-tech eavesdropping.
IMU—The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the radical Islamist guerrilla movement dedicated to overthrowing the Uzbekistan government. Considered the Central Asian franchise of Al Qaida, the IMU provided hundreds of the fighters in the Shahikot valley.
IPB—Intelligence preparation of the battlefield, the process of building as accurate a picture as possible of the enemy force before battle is joined.
ISR—Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
JSOC—Joint Special Operations Command, the two-star headquarters at Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina, in charge of the classified U.S. special operations forces such as 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment—Delta (i.e., Delta Force). Major General Dell Dailey commanded JSOC during the war in Afghanistan.
Kalashnikov—The name given to any of the AK series of weapons (such as the AK-47) designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov.
LZ—Landing zone (for a helicopter). Strictly, this is called a PZ (pickup zone) when it refers to a spot at which troops are waiting for a helicopter to collect them.
MBITR—Multiband Intra/Inter Team Radio, a handheld radio used by the U.S. military for communication over short distances.
MC-130—The Combat Talon, the special operations version of the venerable C-130 Hercules, equipped with in-flight refueling equipment, terrain-following and terrain-avoidance radar, as well as inertial and Global Positioning System satellite-guided navigation systems.
Mi-17—The Soviet-designed “Hip” transport helicopter used by both sides in the Afghan civil war between the Northern Alliance and the Taliban, as well as by the Central Intelligence Agency.
NCO—Noncommissioned officer, an enlisted soldier of the rank of corporal or above (in the Army); all sergeants are, by definition, NCOs.
NSA—National Security Agency; headquartered at Fort Meade, Maryland, the NSA is the largest of the U.S. intelligence agencies. Its job is to intercept foreign communications while protecting U.S. communications.
ODA—Operational Detachment Alpha, the 12-man (ideally) A-team around which the U.S. Army’s Special Forces units are organized.
P-3—The U.S. Navy’s Orion turboprop aircraft, originally designed for tracking submarines, the Orion has spawned several high-tech offshoots, such as the EP-3, which can intercept communications and film action on the ground from high altitude.
Rakkasans—The name given to the 187th Infantry Regiment by the Japanese after World War II. The regiment was a paratroop unit and Rakkasan loosely translates as “falling umbrella.” Three battalions of the regiment made up the 3rd Brigade of the 101stAirborne Division (Air Assault) at the time of Anaconda.
RP—Release point, the predetermined location during a helicopter mission at which pilots know that by flying in a certain direction at a certain speed for a given amount of time they will arrive at their LZ.
RPG-7—The standard rocket-propelled grenade weapon designed by the Soviet Union and used by guerrilla forces the world over. It consists of a reusable launcher and a grenade with a high-explosive warhead.
RTO—Radio-telephone operator; the soldier whose job it is to man the radio.
SCIF—Secure, compartmented intelligence facility; the part of a military base at which the most sensitive intelligence issues are discussed.
SEALs—The Navy’s Sea-Air-Land commandos.
SF—Special Forces, the Army’s unconventional warfare troops, not to be confused with special operations forces.
SIGINT—Signals intelligence, i.e. intelligence derived from intercepting radio, telephone, computer or other communications.
SOF—Special operations forces; in the U.S. military, this consists of all the forces under the command of U.S. Special Operations Command, including Army Special Forces, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, Delta Force, Navy SEALs, and the Air Force’s MC-130 and AC-130 units and special tactics squadrons.
Texas 14—The code name given to Operational Detachment Alpha 594, the Special Forces A-team led by Captain Glenn Thomas.
TF—Task force; the designation given to any military unit that has been specially configured for a particular mission.
TOC—Tactical operations center, the field headquarters for a military unit; in joint (i.e., multiservice) task forces, this is sometimes referred to as the joint operations center, or JOC.
UAV—Unmanned aerial vehicle, a drone that is remotely piloted.
VTC—Video-teleconference. A meeting at which participants may be on separate continents, but can see each other via a system of video cameras and monitors at each location.