Michael J. Durant
1961-
Mike Durant speaking at Tyndall Air Force Base in November 2002
Nickname	Mike
Rank	Chief Warrant Officer 4
Battles/wars	Operation Just Cause Operation Desert Storm Battle of Mogadishu
Awards	Distinguished Flying Cross (3) Bronze Star Purple Heart

Michael 'Mike' J. Durant (born July 23, 1961) is the American pilot who was held prisoner after a raid in Mogadishu, Somalia on October 3, 1993. Durant is a native of Berlin, New Hampshire, and served in the United States Army 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Night Stalkers) as a Chief Warrant Officer 3. He retired from the Army as a CW4 Blackhawk helicopter master aviator in the 160th SOAR after participating in combat operations Prime Chance, Just Cause, Desert Storm, and Gothic Serpent. His awards include the Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster, Bronze Star with Valor Device, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, three Air Medals, POW Medal, and numerous others. He and his wife Lisa have six children. Original caption reads: Retired Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Michael Durant, a former [[Black Hawk]] helicopter pilot, speaks to officers Nov. ... Tyndall Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force in Bay County, Florida, United States. ... July 23 is the 204th day (205th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 161 days remaining. ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1961 calendar). ... Mike Durants helicopter -Super 64- heading out over Mogadishu on October 3, 1993. ... A Mogadishu boy straddles the remains of a US Black Hawk helicopter during the 1992-1995 UN peacekeeping operation Mogadishu (Somali: Muqdisho) is a city in eastern Africa, on the Indian Ocean. ... October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Berlin is a city located on the Androscoggin River in north-eastern Coos County, New Hampshire, USA. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 10,331. ... The United States Army is one of the armed forces of the United States and has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... (Redirected from 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment) Unit name 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) Abbreviated: 160th SOAR (A) Nickname Night Stalkers Branch U.S. Army Mission Provide aviation support to U.S. Special Operations Forces Headquarters Fort Campbell, Kentucky USA Motto Night Stalkers Dont Quit (NSDQ) Death Waits... Two Bermuda Regiment Warrant Officers. ... Two Bermuda Regiment Warrant Officers. ... The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk is a medium-lift utility or assault helicopter used by over 20 nations. ... Combatants United States Special Operations Command Iranian Navy An aerial view of the leased barge Hercules with three Mark III patrol boats and the tugboat Mister John H tied up alongside in the northern Persian Gulf. ... Combatants United States Panama Commanders General Carl W. Stiner Manuel Noriega Strength 27,684+ 3,000+ Casualties 23 Dead, 324 Wounded 450 Military, 200-4,000 Civilian U.S. Army 7th Infantry Division (light) soldiers prepare to take La Comandancia in the El Chorrillo neighborhood of Panama City, December 1989. ... Combatants UN Coalition Republic of Iraq Commanders Norman Schwarzkopf Peter de la Billière Khalid bin Sultan Saleh Al-Muhaya Mohamed Hussein Tantawi Saddam Hussein Strength 883,863 360,000 Casualties 378 dead, 1,000 wounded 25,000 dead, 75,000 wounded The Gulf War or the Persian Gulf War... Bravo Company, 3rd Batallion of the 75th Ranger Regiment in Somalia, 1993. ... The Distinguished Service Medal is a high level military and civilian decoration of the United States of America which is issued for meritorious service to the government of the United States in either a senior government service position or as a senior officer of the United States armed forces. ... The Distinguished Flying Cross. ... Bronze and Silver oak leaf clusters An Oak leaf cluster is a common device which is placed on military awards and decorations to denote those who have received more than one bestowal of a particular decoration. ... The Bronze Star Medal is a United States Armed Forces individual military decoration and is the fourth highest award for bravery, heroism or meritorious service. ... The Valor device, also known as V-device, V device, and Combat V, is an award of the United States military which is authorized by the military services as an attachment to certain awards and decorations. ... For other meanings see Purple Heart (disambiguation). ... The Meritorious Service Medal is a military award presented to members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguished themselves by outstanding non-combat meritorious achievement or service to the United States subsequent to January 16, 1969. ... The Air Medal is a military decoration of the United States which was established by Executive Order 9158, signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt, on May 11, 1942. ... Prisoner of War Medal The Prisoner of War Medal was authorized by Congress and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan in 1986. ...

Biography

pilot of Super Six Four, the second MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter to crash during the Battle of Mogadishu on October 3, 1993. The helicopter was hit by a rocket propelled grenade, and, although the aircraft remained stable at first, a few minutes later it began to malfunction, which led to its crash about a mile southwest of the raid's target. The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk is a medium-lift utility or assault helicopter used by over 20 nations. ... The Bell 206 of Canadian Helicopters Robinson Helicopter Company (USA) R44, a four seat development of the R22 A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors consisting of two or more rotor blades. ... Combatants USSOF, UNOSOM II Somali National Alliance-affiliated militias Commanders William F. Garrison Mohamed Farrah Aidid Strength 160 2,000+ Casualties U.S. 18 killed 73 wounded 1 captured Malaysia 1 killed 7 wounded Pakistan 2 wounded Militia and civilians 1,000+ killed 3,000+ wounded Task Force Ranger achieved... An RPG-7 captured by the US Army A rocket propelled grenade (RPG) is a loose term describing hand-held, shoulder-launched anti-tank weapons capable of firing an unguided rocket equipped with an explosive warhead. ...

Durant was badly injured, but survived the crash. Shortly after the crash, two Delta Force soldiers, MSG Gary Gordon and SFC Randy Shughart, arrived and fought off the advancing Somalis but were eventually shot and killed. Both Gordon and Shughart received the Medal of Honor posthumously for this action. The Somalis captured Durant and held him for eleven days before his release. The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (1st SFOD-D), commonly referred to as Delta within the U.S. Army or as Delta Force by the general public and officially recognized by the Department of Defense as the Combat Applications Group, is a Special Operations Force (SOF) and an integral... United States Army Master Sgt. ... United States Army Sgt. ... The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States. ...

Durant is retired from the military. He now offers seminars to military personnel about helicopter maneuvering and Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) operations. Search and Rescue (acronym SAR) is an operation mounted by emergency services, often well-trained volunteers, to find someone believed to be in distress, lost, sick or injured either in a remote or difficult to access area, such as mountains or forest, or at sea, whether close to shore or...

Durant also offers talks about the Somalia raid and the experiences he had in captivity. He personally offered an extensive interview to actor Ron Eldard, who portrayed Durant in the movie Black Hawk Down, which chronicles the events of the raid. Ronald J. Eldard (Born: February 20, 1965 in Long Island, New York, New York) is an American film actor. ... Black Hawk Down is a 2001 film by Ridley Scott, based on the book Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War by Mark Bowden. ...

In 2003, Durant published a book titled In The Company of Heroes in which he chronicles his military career and his captivity. 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This is the cover of Michael Durants book, In the Company of Heroes. ...

Durant was a member of the Bush-Cheney '04 Veterans Team.

Works

1. Durant, Michael & Hartov, Steven (2003). In the Company of Heroes. Putnam Pub Group. ISBN 0-399-15060-9. 
2. Durant, Michael & Hartov, Steven (2003). The Night Stalkers. Putnam Pub Group. ISBN 0-399-15392-6. 

External links

• Current Official Website
• Original Website