documentary

Airborne & Special Operations Museum To Honor Medal Of Honor Recipients

The Airborne and Special Operations Museum in Fayetteville, NC will host special screenings of documentary films honoring some of the United States’ World War II Medal of Honor recipients. The event will take place on March 25 at 10 a.m. in the museum’s Yarborough-Bank Theatre.

The guest speaker will be state Rep. John Szoka, a retired Army lieutenant colonel who represents NC House District 45. Also in attendance, will be Maurice Renaud, the son of Alexandre Renaud — wartime mayor of Ste. Mere Eglise, France — and Simone Renaud — who was known as the “Mother of Normandy” for her care of the graves of fallen U.S. soldiers after World War II.

At 11:30 a.m., the museum will host a special screening of the Doug Stebleton-produced documentary, “The Heroes of World War II.”
A second film focused on Simone Renaud, “Mother of Normandy,” which also was produced by Stebleton, will be shown at 1:30 p.m.
During the Medal of Honor events, officials said the museum will highlight three World War II paratroopers: Pfc. Charles Neilans DeGlopper and Pvt. Joe Gandara of the 82nd Airborne Division and Lt. Col. Robert George Cole of the 101st Airborne Division.

DeGlopper and Gandara were awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for their valor in combat during the Normandy invasion. LTC Cole never lived to see his award, he was killed in action a few months later in the Netherlands during Operation Market Garden.

Renaud whose village of Saint Mere Eglise was a key target for the American paratroopers on D-Day, will be autographing copies of a book that was authored by his father “Sainte-Mere-Eglise: D-Day, June 6, 1944,” that was first published in 1945, and a book about his mother, “Mother of Normandy.”

To read the Fayetteville Observer’s entire article click here:

Photo courtesy of Airborne and Special Operations Museum

“Danger Close” Documentary of Special Ops Debuts in Tampa

Television reporter Alex Quade has covered US Special Operations forces numerous times in Iraq and Afghanistan and she earned the trust and respect of the troops who are normally distrustful of reporters and the media in general.

Now she is telling their story with a documentary “Danger Close” that will premiere on Thursday night in Tampa Bay. The title Danger Close denotes a military term where friendly troops are in such close proximity to the enemy, they are in danger of suffering from artillery, mortars or air attacks.

Quade has compiled footage on the ground with Special Operations Forces and will show their families back home and the American public what dangers the troops face on a daily basis fighting in faraway lands.

“This is the closest Americans will get to go along with elite special forces troops and other amazing service members,” said Quade, 48. “This is as ‘danger close’ to war as you will possibly get and it shows the love in this brotherhood and for each other.”
Quade is headed to Tampa for the debut. She said she was inspired to make the film and to spend so much time embedding with commandos in Afghanistan and Iraq, by a motto U.S. troops follow.
“Operators would never leave a fallen soldier behind,” she said. “And the truth shouldn’t be left behind either.”

The choice of Tampa for the premiere was a no-brainer; it is the home of the US Special Operations Command and many will attend including several Medal of Honor recipients. Quade also told the story of Green Beret Staff sergeant Robert Pirelli of the 10^th Special Forces Group. He was killed in Iraq by small arms fire in 2005.

“Rob’s dad made me promise that I would let him know that his son wouldn’t be forgotten over there,” Quade says in the trailer.

To read the entire article from Tampa Bay News, click here:

Photo courtesy DOD

Legion of Brothers Documentary Debuts at Sundance Film Festival

Veil is Finally Lifted on first SF Post 9/11 Missions

Just weeks after the Twin Towers fell in New York City, US Army Special Forces A-teams were deployed to Afghanistan to make contact with the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance military forces and capture a series of strategic towns in the northern area of the country.

One of those A-teams, (ODA 595) commanded by CPT Mark Nutsch with Northern Alliance troops captured the key town of Mazur-e-Sharif while conducting the first horse-mounted attack in the US military in over 100 years.

The other A-team, (ODA-574) commanded by CPT Jason Amerine deployed on November 3. Infiltrating key points in the south, they made contact with future Afghan President Hamid Karzai and moved toward Kandahar.

Now their story is finally being told, brought to the big screen by filmmaker Greg Barker who has put together the documentary “Legion of Brothers” in concert with CNN Films.

Immediately after the September 11 attacks, the United States government initiated a secret war in Afghanistan. Fewer than a hundred Special Forces soldiers, building a coalition with the rebels of the Northern Alliance, faced off against the Taliban and succeeded in driving them out of power by the end of the year—with minimal coalition casualties and without conventional, large-scale military operations. Despite this victory, the U.S. and its allies soon became mired in a seemingly never-ending war.
Acclaimed filmmaker Greg Barker (Manhunt, 2013 Sundance Film Festival) expertly reveals this unexplored story, drawing on unprecedented access to several of the Green Berets who played pivotal roles in these covert missions. Driven by a sense of justice, these soldiers left family members in the dark as they set off to serve as Afghanistan’s liberators, only to confront the tragic realities of war. Reflecting on their experiences—and on the brothers-in-arms they lost—these elite soldiers offer at once a riveting celebration of valor and a sobering, cautionary tale.

For more on the film check out Sundance’s website, or read a review from Variety here:

The film shows how the lessons learned from decades of Special Forces missions and training were put to good use and how the US military with no massive conventional force was able to topple the government of the Taliban.

Featured photo: US Special Operations Command