Veterans Radio

Veterans Radio


Army Ranger Tony Brooks Recovery of Turbine 33 and Rescue of Marcus Luttrell

August 24, 2021

Army Ranger Tony Brooks talks about why he joined, Ranger training and the reality of a recovery operation and secondary rescue efforts for Navy Seal Marcus Luttrell.

On June 28, 2005, a four-man Navy SEAL reconnaissance team under Operation Red Wings was ambushed in northeastern Afghanistan.. A quick reaction force was dispatched. Turbine 33, carrying eight Navy SEALs and eight members of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade―careening the dual rotor Chinook toward the rugged peak of Sawtalo Sar.  The result was the single deadliest incident in Special Operations history at the time.

Commanders called on the largest element of US Special Forces, the 75th Ranger Regiment. The rescue mission: Operation Red Wings II.

Author Dr.Tony Brooks gives a first-hand account of the daring recovery of Turbine 33 and the subsequent search for the remaining compromised Navy SEAL recon team―one of whom was Marcus Luttrell, the lone survivor. The Rangers were up against lack of intel, treacherous terrain, violent weather, and an enemy that was raised to fight.

Tony Brooks lived by the axiom, “Leave No Man Behind.” He is the first to tell the story other books and films have omitted, one of overcoming overwhelming odds to accomplish a mission: to bring every American soldier home.  Tony talks with host Jim Fausone and paints a vivid picture of Army Ranger training and the strain of the mission.