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Soldiers • May 2009 7 go back the way we came.” “We knew we might get hurt, but we really didn’t think about it,” said Sanders. “The insurgents were so dug in, so well, that even the close-air sup- port wasn’t enough. It helped, but it was by no means a magic wand,” said Howard. “You would think when the bombs start dropping they would stop shooting at you. That’s the thought process, and you know it might kill you or somebody else, but when there are so many pieces of hot metal flying all around you constantly, you’ve got to let it go.” With bombs falling and heavy gun- fire coming from every side, the team returned fire. Team members recall going through masses of ammo, in ad- dition to the bombs that were dropped and the rounds the aircraft were firing. The team’s fire was controlled, though, said Walton. “Cloud cover was coming in, and there was no certainty that we would be able to get out that night. So we didn’t waste our ammo. We really didn’t fire unless we had a shot or when we needed to lay suppres- sive fire to allow people to move.” The insurgents, likewise, were shooting in a controlled manner. The gunfire was heavy, sustained and ac- curate. Team members recall that even if the bullets weren’t kicking up beside them or hitting them, they definitely heard them crack near them. The only break in the battle was when a bomb was dropped on a three- story building. The building exploded outward. “Good guy or bad guy, you’re going to stop when you see that,” said Morales. “It reminded me of the videos from 9/11—everything starts flush- ing at you, debris starts falling—and everything gets darker.” “I was totally in the cloud of black smoke. I couldn’t see an inch in front of my face,” said Howard. Plants recalled hearing the call for fire and wanting to see where the bomb was going. “I was staring at it and saw the building go up,” he said. “I remember looking up, and then all of this stuff starting coming down. All I could do was roll up tight and hug the cliff wall.” The battle started to turn when Howard, a trained sniper, started picking the insurgents off. Howard was not in the lead element, and he had to fight his way up the mountain to come to the aid of his team. The fight was not easy. He and the team of commandos he led up the mountain were under intense insurgent fire. They were getting hit with rocket-propelled grenades, small arms and machine-gun fire. “We knew some of our guys were hurt and that we had to get to them,” said Howard. “We were pinned down,” said Wal- Spc. Michael D. Carter Members of Operational Detachment Alpha 3336 of the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) recon the remote Shok Valley of Afghanistan, where they fought an almost-seven-hour battle with terrorists in a remote mountain village. Patches and insignia may be altered for security reasons. Sgt. David N. Gunn Afghanistan National Army commando ca- dets graduate from the commando training course at Camp Morehead, Kabul Province, Afghanistan, Oct. 10, 2007. Cadets endured months of training to achieve the commando status and earn the coveted maroon beret. Soldiers • May 2009 7