Prince Harry of Wales is the 3rd in line to the British throne. For approximately 10 weeks he secretly served on the front lines in Afghanistan. He volunteered to go and serve, to fight for his country, even though he did not have to considering the fact that he was born into the Royal Family. For obvious security reasons, the military asked the press to keep his service secret - in effect, allow him to serve as a regular soldier and not to be a high interest target for the enemy.
The prince was a member of a group called Joint Tactical Air Control, or JTAC. For the lay-person, what this group does is pretty much encapsulated in their name. This is a force comprised of various services such as the Army and Air Force from allied countries (Joint) tactically (Tactical) coordinating and controlling (Control) the use of air power (Air). To simplify it even more, it's a really big coordinated effort by a bunch of people from various services and countries on how best to use bombs, aircraft missiles, and air support to accomplish an objective.
By all accounts, this British-equivalent Second Lieutenant served well and fought alongside his brothers with the same courage, dedication, and commitment. That is, until his secret was revealed by an Australian news agency which prompted his recall back to his homeland. His desire to serve and to be put in harms way should be applauded.
Fast forward to the email I received today...
Forward Operating Base Delhi, a gritty and violent Afghanistan outpost set deep inside Taliban country, was taking fire from multiple sides. Observing the action from a fortified post, a joint terminal attack controller with the code name "Widow Six Seven" needed close-air support. He patched through to Capt. Ben Donberg, an American F-15E pilot cruising overhead. In a lilting but adrenaline-fueled British accent, Widow Six Seven guided Donberg and a companion F-15 pilot to the entrenched Taliban fighters for one, two and, finally, three rounds of laser-guided bomb strikes.
Only later did we all find out that the young freshman I knew at CU, Ben, had just executed Prince Harry's (Widow Six Seven's) first air-strike. Congratulations man (right in picture)...now that's what I call a memory that will last a lifetime.
