This week, Warrior of the Week is dedicated not to a single warrior, but to the men whose lives were lost aboard Extortion 17—one of the darkest days in the history of the United States special operations community.On the night of August 5–6, 2011, American and Afghan forces were conducting operations in Afghanistan’s Tangi Valley, Wardak Province. A U.S. Army CH-47D Chinook, call sign Extortion 17, was dispatched carrying a quick-reaction force to reinforce Rangers engaged with enemy fighters on...

Branch: U.S. AIR FORCE | Unit: 24th Special Tactics Squadron | Action: Global War on TerrorismSome warriors are remembered for the battles they fought. Others are remembered because they chose to stand and fight when every instinct said to fall back. Master Sergeant John A. Chapman embodied that kind of courage.Born in Springfield, Massachusetts, and raised in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, Chapman enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1985 as an Information Systems Operator. Driven to serve on...