Air Commando Gutierrez Nominated for Air Force Cross
Bleeding Out
“We decided that we were combat air effective,”
and the high-value target was dead, so “we were going to use one more
pass as a cover for us to exit,” Gutierrez said. “I put my kit back on,
put my helmet back on, ... [and] gave instructions to the A-10 pilot. He
fully obliged [and] came back through. As [he] struck, we pushed out
and left the compound.”
Determined not to be a burden on his team,
Gutierrez got to his feet, with the medic holding his bag and supporting
his shoulder.
“Since my ears were out, my balance was completely
off. I couldn’t really stand up straight,” he said. “I kind of would
veer off everywhere.” Gutierrez called in a medical evacuation for
himself, the captain, and two other wounded troops, but he was initially
denied. It was too dangerous; they had to leave the area, he was told.
Sporadic gunfire followed them as they stumbled
away from the village. After struggling for about two miles, Gutierrez’s
lung collapsed for a second time. The medic did another needle
decompression by the side of a four-way intersection as the A-10s
continued to provide close air support and ISR assets fed them vital
information from above. When he got his breath back, Gutierrez requested
an immediate medevac.
The troops found a muddy, square vegetation field,
roughly 300 feet by 300 feet, which had just enough room for one
helicopter to land. They secured the site and waited for the medevac, a
joint Spanish and Italian team from Herat Airfield, to arrive.
Wet and weak from the loss of blood, Gutierrez
waited for an hour-and-a-half. His uniform became soaked and stuck to
his arm. At first he thought it was sweat from the difficult trek to the
landing zone, or maybe muddy water from the canal he stumbled in as
they pushed out.
He had no idea he had lost five-and-a-half pints of blood.
Wow.
Just plain wow.
I fuck with Air Force guys but wow.
That's plain bad ass.
Read the whole thing here.
