Gary Gordon
Gary Gordon | |
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Persian Gulf War
Operation Gothic Serpent | |
Awards | Army Commendation Medal |
Gary Ivan Gordon (August 30, 1960 – October 3, 1993) 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.
Early life and career
Gary Gordon was born August 30, 1960, in
Combat and death in Somalia
Gordon was posted to
Gordon and his
Once on the ground, Gordon and Shughart, armed with only their personal weapons and sidearms, fought their way to the downed Black Hawk. By this time more Somalis were arriving, intent on either capturing or killing the American servicemen. When they reached Super Six Four, Gordon and Shughart extracted the pilot,
Gordon's body was eventually recovered and is buried in Lincoln Cemetery,
There was some confusion in the aftermath of the action as to the final moments of the firefight. The official citation states that Shughart had been killed first but
After the terrorist attack on the United States on
Honors and awards
MSG Gordon's personal decorations include:[11]
Combat Infantryman Badge with star (denoting second award)[11][2] | |||||||||||
Medal of Honor[2] | |||||||||||
Purple Heart[2] | Meritorious Service Medal[2] | Army Commendation Medal | |||||||||
Joint Service Achievement Medal with 1 Oak leaf cluster[2]
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Army Achievement Medal with 1 Oak leaf cluster[citation needed] | Army Good Conduct Medal with four bronze loops[2] | |||||||||
National Defense Service Medal | Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal | Humanitarian Service Medal[citation needed] | |||||||||
Non-Commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon with Award numeral 3[citation needed] | Army Service Ribbon | United Nations Medal[citation needed] | |||||||||
French Army Mountaineering Badge[2] | Royal Danish Parachutist Badge[2] | ||||||||||
Master Parachutist Badge[2] | Military Freefall Parachutist Badge[2] | Expert Marksmanship badge with rifle component bar[2] | |||||||||
Special Forces Tab[2] | Ranger Tab[2]
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Joint Meritorious Unit Award[2] | Valorous Unit Award[2] |
The U.S. Navy officially named a
Gordon has been honored elsewhere as well. Gordon Elementary School in Linden Oaks,
Medal of Honor
On May 23, 1994, both Gordon and Shughart posthumously received the Medal of Honor in recognition for the actions they took and the sacrifices they made to help protect the lives of the crew of Super Six Four. They were the only soldiers participating in Operation Gothic Serpent to receive the military's highest honor, and the first Medal of Honor recipients since the Vietnam War.[14] Their medals were presented to their widows Stephanie Shughart and Carmen Gordon by Bill Clinton in a ceremony at the White House.[3]
Medal of Honor citation
Master Sergeant Gary Ivan Gordon, United States Army, distinguished himself by actions above and beyond the call of duty on 3 October 1993, while serving as Sniper Team Leader, United States Army Special Operations Command with Task Force Ranger in Mogadishu, Somalia. Master Sergeant Gordon's sniper team provided precision fires from the lead helicopter during an assault and at two helicopter crash sites, while subjected to intense automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenade fires. When Master Sergeant Gordon learned that ground forces were not immediately available to secure the second crash site, he and another sniper unhesitatingly volunteered to be inserted to protect the four critically wounded personnel, despite being well aware of the growing number of enemy personnel closing in on the site. After his third request to be inserted, Master Sergeant Gordon received permission to perform his volunteer mission. When debris and enemy ground fires at the site caused them to abort the first attempt, Master Sergeant Gordon was inserted one hundred meters south of the crash site. Equipped with only his sniper rifle and a pistol, Master Sergeant Gordon and his fellow sniper, while under intense small arms fire from the enemy, fought their way through a dense maze of shanties and shacks to reach the critically injured crew members. Master Sergeant Gordon immediately pulled the pilot and the other crew members from the aircraft, establishing a perimeter which placed him and his fellow sniper in the most vulnerable position. Master Sergeant Gordon used his long range rifle and side arm to kill an undetermined number of attackers until he depleted his ammunition. Master Sergeant Gordon then went back to the wreckage, recovering some of the crew's weapons and ammunition. Despite the fact that he was critically low on ammunition, he provided some of it to the dazed pilot and then radioed for help. Master Sergeant Gordon continued to travel the perimeter, protecting the downed crew. After his team member was fatally wounded and his own rifle ammunition exhausted, Master Sergeant Gordon returned to the wreckage, recovering a rifle with the last five rounds of ammunition and gave it to the pilot with the words, "good luck." Then, armed only with his pistol, Master Sergeant Gordon continued to fight until he was fatally wounded. His actions saved the pilot's life. Master Sergeant Gordon's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest standards of military service and reflect great credit upon him, his unit and the United States Army.[15]
In culture
In the 2001 film
See also
- 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), the "Night Stalkers"
- List of post-Vietnam Medal of Honor recipients
- Operation Restore Hope
- U.S. Army Special Forces
- U.S. Special Operations Forces
- 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta
- Statue of Gary Gordon
References
- This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History.
- ^ "Gary I. Gordon". Veteran Tributes. Archived from the original on August 10, 2014. Retrieved October 5, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "Memorializations". U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Museum. Archived from the original on March 15, 2003. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
- ^ a b "REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AT PRESENTATION OF MEDAL OF HONOR POSTHUMOUSLY TO MASTER SERGEANT GARY GORDON AND SERGEANT FIRST CLASS RANDALL SHUGHART". White House Press Secretary. May 23, 1994. Archived from the original on July 26, 2001. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
- ^ 1993 Congressional Record, Vol. 139, Page 24615-24616 Archived
- ^ Bowden 1999, p. 368.
- ISBN 978-0-399-15060-9.
- ^ Bowden 1999, p. 374.
- ^ "Pentagon Briefing". CNN. March 20, 2002. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
- ^ Naylor, Sean D. "Deadly Find: Soldiers capture cache of gear from downed U.S. helicopters on al-Qaida fighter they kill". Army Times.
- American Forces Press Service. Archived from the originalon April 14, 2012. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
- ^ a b "Gary I. Gordon, Master Sergeant". veterantributes.org. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
- ^ "USNS Gordon (T-AKR 296) Named after Medal of Honor recipient". No. 412-96 (Press release). U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs). July 3, 1996. Archived from the original on March 1, 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
- ^ Brooks, Drew (February 28, 2009). "Gordon Elementary: Dedicated to 'name of a hero'". The Fayetteville Observer. Archived from the original on July 30, 2017. Retrieved March 2, 2009.
- ^ "Medal of Honor recipients". United States Army Center of Military History. August 3, 2009. Archived from the original on December 22, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Gary Ivan Gordon – Medal of Honor". Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation. Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
- ISBN 978-1477817407.
Further reading
- .
- Eversmann, Matt (2004). The Battle of Mogadishu: First Hand Accounts from the Men of Task Force Ranger. Presidio Press. ISBN 978-0-345-45965-7.
External links
- "Gary Gordon". Hall of Valor. Military Times. Archived
- "Medal of Honor recipients on Film".
- "Monument". Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
- "Deputy Secretary of Defense England's Remarks at the Visions of Valor Medal of Honor Event". Archived from the original on August 29, 2010.
- "Gary Gordon's grave at Findagrave". Find a Grave.