Apache Battalion receives Valorous Unit Award - Texas Military Department

I was in Iraq in 2005 with the 56th BCT/36th Inf Div when this incident occurred. All of us "T-Patchers" were proud of our helicopter folks after that.:

Two of the DFC’s were awarded after what became known as the Battle of Donkey Island on June 30th, 2007.

During a ground attack against 20 insurgents guarding a weapons cache in Ar Ramadi, a U.S. Soldier was wounded by enemy forces. Medevac aircraft were unable to transport the critically-wounded soldier to a treatment facility.

A 1-149th “Apache” landed on the battlefield and placed the wounded Soldier in the front seat of the aircraft. The co-pilot/gunner strapped himself to the aircraft fuselage, outside the cockpit, and the pilot flew the aircraft and wounded soldier to a medical facility.