These four female airmen know the reality of war from the front. They know the sounds, the smells of gunfire, and the instincts for survival. But they also know that they have what it takes to do the job when the fecal matter hits the oscillating blade.
On December 5, 2005, these four Air Force enlisted women got their baptism of fire and conducted themselves with skill and courage. They were trained for this, and they responded with quickness and courage to the immediacy of the moment when the convoy they were providing security for came under an Iraqi ambush.
Airman Nichole O’Hara was manning the .50-cal. machine gun on top of her MRAP when the ambush opened up. She swung her gun toward the source of the incoming tracer rounds and opened up with the kind of suppressing fire that only a Ma Deuce can give. She started sending those big bullets downrange with speed and accuracy, enabling the rest of her team to get to the two trucks that had been hit and to their wounded civilian drivers.
Airman 1st Class Charity Trueblood was among the first to get to one of the wounded drivers and helped to get him out of the burning vehicle and provide first aid to him. In the video, she will speak about how glad she was that they were able to get the wounded out of harm’s way. Like any who have been in serious combat situations, she and the others could call December 5, 2005, one of her worst days in Iraq, but you will also hear her tell about her best day in Iraq, when she was able to be reunited with the man she was able to save, who was in good health and still in Iraq, still driving.
You will hear from two of the other Air Force women in this video too. The thing about their comments is that they will resonate with their male counterparts as well. They find it hard to explain the things that they have experienced in combat. Those things are beyond the capacity of words to be explained and understood by any who have not been there, who have not had those experiences.
You will hear, too, about the camaraderie that is formed between them, just as it is with their male counterparts. It is closer and deeper than most any other human relationship. There is a sisterhood/brotherhood that is developed by those who share the daily reality of serving in a combat zone—and those who have experienced the very real hell of combat itself—that is like no other. And it will last for a lifetime.
You will be proud of these young women—of their skill, their demeanor, and their all-American qualities. They have proven that they are made of the right stuff in the most intense crucible of combat. I don’t know where they are now, some 15 years later, but I would bet that they are as effective and competent in their present roles, whatever they may be at this time. We wish them all good, long, productive, and happy lives.