Sergeants Miller and Cooper jumped from their seats the instant our helicopter touched down. While Cooper unbuckled the injured soldier, Miller slid back our copter's side door, and the sound and wind from the Black Hawk's main rotor blades blasted in. The wind felt freezing on my face and hands, and I was thankful for the extra warmth provided by my military vest.
The sergeants lifted up the injured soldier, moved him to the open door, and handed him to another pair of soldiers who took his litter and carried him out of sight. In less than five minutes, Miller and Cooper had freed the rest of us from our cramped litters. In spite of being on a US Air Force Base nearly 100 miles southeast of where the last battle took place, Jack and I had no intention of going unarmed. We made sure to re
