Randy Shughart

{{Short description|United States Army Medal of Honor recipient (1958–1993)}}

{{Infobox military person

| name = Randy Shughart

| image = Randy Shughart.jpg

| image_size =

| alt =

| caption =

| nickname =

| birth_date = {{birth date|1958|08|13}}

| birth_place = Lincoln, Nebraska, United States

| death_date = {{death date and age|1993|10|03|1958|08|13}}

| death_place = Mogadishu, Somalia

| placeofburial = Westminster Cemetery, Carlisle, Pennsylvania

| allegiance = United States

| branch = United States Army

| serviceyears = 1976–1993

| rank = Sergeant First Class

| servicenumber =

| unit = 2nd Ranger Battalion
Delta Force

| commands =

| battles = Operation Just Cause
Operation Gothic Serpent

Battle of Mogadishu{{KIA}}

| awards = Medal of Honor
Purple Heart

| relations =

| laterwork =

}}

Randall David Shughart (August 13, 1958 – October 3, 1993) was a United States Army Delta Force operator who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Mogadishu, during Operation Gothic Serpent in October 1993.

Early life

Shughart was born August 13, 1958, in Lincoln, Nebraska. After his father, Herbert Shughart, left the Air Force, the Shugharts moved to Newville, Pennsylvania, to live and work on a dairy farm.{{Cite book |last=DeLong |first=Kent |title=Mogadishu!: Heroism and Tragedy |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |year=1994 |isbn=9780275949259 |editor-last=Tuckey |editor-first=Steven |location=Santa Barbara, CA |pages=41–42 |oclc=757390202}}

Military career

Shughart joined the United States Army while attending Big Spring High School in Newville, entering upon graduation in 1976. After completing basic training, he successfully completed infantry AIT (advanced individual training), Airborne School, and in 1978 was assigned to the 2nd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, at Fort Lewis, Washington.{{Cite web |title=Randall D. Shughart |url=http://www.veterantributes.org/tributedetail.asp?id=210 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091202194538/http://www.veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.asp?ID=210 |archive-date=2 December 2009 |access-date=9 September 2010 |website=Veteran Tributes}} Several months later, he completed a pre-ranger course (formerly known as SURT, Small Unit Ranger Tactics), was granted a slot to attend Ranger School, graduated, and earned the Ranger Tab. Shughart left active duty and went into the Army Reserve in June 1980. In December 1983, Shughart returned to active duty and the following year attended Special Forces training. Shughart was assigned to Delta Force and was transferred to Fort Bragg, North Carolina in June 1986. As a Delta Force operator, he advanced to Assistant Team Sergeant.{{Cite book |last=Willbanks |first=James H. |title=America's Heroes: Medal of Honor Recipients from the Civil War to Afghanistan |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2011 |isbn=9781598843934 |location=Santa Barbara, CA |page=307 |author-link=James Willbanks}}

Shughart was deployed to Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993 as part of Task Force Ranger. On October 3, 1993, during an assault mission to apprehend advisors to the Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid, a Black Hawk helicopter with the call sign Super Six-One was shot down in the city. A combat search and rescue (CSAR) team was sent in to secure the survivors. Then, a second Black Hawk helicopter, call sign Super Six-Four, was shot down.

Shughart, Gary Gordon, and Sergeant First Class Brad Halling had been providing sniper cover from the air from Black Hawk Super Six-Two. Gordon wanted to be inserted to secure the crash site as hostile Somalis were converging on the area.

Mission commanders denied Gordon's request twice, saying that the situation was too dangerous for the snipers to protect the crew from the ground.{{sfn|Bowden|1999|p=148}} Command's position was that the snipers could be of more assistance by providing air cover. Gordon, however, repeated his request until he got permission. Halling stayed behind to man a door gun as one of the helicopter's gunners had been wounded.{{sfn|Bowden|1999|p=148}}

Armed with their sniper rifles and sidearms, Shughart and Gordon were inserted approximately {{convert|100|m}} from the crash site and made their way to the downed Black Hawk. Chief Warrant Officer Mike Durant was already defending the aircraft with an MP5, but was unable to move from his seat due to injuries sustained in the crash. When they reached Super Six-Four, they extracted Durant and the other crew from the helicopter and defended the aircraft. It is believed that Gordon was the first of the two to be killed by the surrounding mob. Shughart retrieved Gordon's CAR-15 rifle and gave it to Durant to use. Shortly after, Shughart was killed, the site was overrun and Durant was taken hostage. According to Durant's book In the Company of Heroes, the Somalis counted 25 of their militia dead after the firefight.{{Cite book |last1=Durant |first1=Michael J. |title=In The Company of Heroes: A True Story |title-link=In the Company of Heroes |last2=Hartov |first2=Steve |publisher=G. P. Putnam's Sons |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-399-15060-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/incompanyofheroe00dura/page/39 39] |author-link=Michael Durant}}

There was some confusion in the aftermath of the action as to who had been killed first. The official citation states that Shughart had been killed first but Mark Bowden, author of Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War, relates an account by Sergeant Paul Howe who heard Shughart call for help on the radio and noted that the weapon handed to Durant was not the distinctive M14 rifle that Shughart used. Howe said that Gordon would not have given his weapon to someone while he could still fight. Durant acknowledged that he might have been wrong in his identification but was reluctant to push for the record to be changed since he was not sure.{{sfn|Bowden|1999|p=[https://archive.org/details/blackhawkdownsto00bowd_1/page/374 374]}} Shughart's body was eventually recovered and is buried in Westminster Cemetery, Carlisle, Pennsylvania.{{Cite book |last1=House of Representatives Subcommittee on Military Personnel of the Committee on National Security |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rc1GAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA1 |title=United States Government Knowledge and Accountability for U.S. POW/MIA's (Hearing) |last2=One Hundred Fourth Congress |last3=First session |date=14 November 1995 |publisher=US Government Publishing Office |isbn=9780160529085 |volume=4 |page=1| author2-link=104th United States Congress }}

In popular culture

In the 2001 film Black Hawk Down, Shughart was portrayed by actor Johnny Strong.{{cite book|title=The Ridley Scott Encyclopedia|first=Laurence|last=Raw|publisher=Scarecrow Press|location=Lanham, Maryland|year=2009|page=208|isbn=9780810869516}}

Awards and decorations

SFC Shughart's awards and decorations include:{{cite web|title=Randall D. Shughart, Sergeant First Class|url=http://www.veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.php?recordID=210|website=veterantributes.org|accessdate=August 27, 2022}}{{USCongRec|1994|E13389|date=16 June 1994}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20220812063432/https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-1994-06-16/html/CREC-1994-06-16-pt1-PgE41.htm Archived]

style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"

|colspan="3"|235px

colspan="6"|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=award-leaf|ribbon=Medal of Honor ribbon.svg|width=106}} {{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=award-leaf|ribbon=Purple Heart BAR.svg|width=106}}

{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=award-leaf|ribbon=Meritorious Service ribbon.svg|width=106}}

|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=award-star|ribbon=Army Commendation Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}

|{{Ribbon devices|number=1|type=award-leaf|ribbon=Army Achievement Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}

{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=award-leaf|ribbon=Army Good Conduct Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}100px

|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=National_Defense_Service_Medal_ribbon.svg|width=106}}

|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}

{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=award-leaf|ribbon=NCO Professional Development Ribbon.svg|width=106}}20px

|{{ribbon devices|number=0|ribbon=Army_Service_Ribbon.svg|width=106}}

|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=United_Nations_Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}

colspan="3"|100px 120px 75px

colspan="3"|125px 105px

colspan="3"|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=Joint_Meritorious_Unit_Award_ribbon.svg|width=106}} {{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=Valorous_Unit_Award_ribbon.svg|width=106}}

class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"

colspan="12"|Combat Infantryman Badge with star (denoting second award)

colspan="5"|Medal of Honor

|colspan="5"|Purple Heart

colspan="4"|Meritorious Service Medal

|colspan="4"|Army Commendation Medal

|colspan="4"|Army Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster

colspan="4"|Army Good Conduct Medal, 5 awards

|colspan="4"|National Defense Service Medal

|colspan="4"|Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal

colspan="4"|Non-Commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon with Award numeral 3

|colspan="4"|Army Service Ribbon

|colspan="4"|United Nations Medal{{citation needed |date=August 2022 |reason=not visible on uniform, not 100% sure because TF Ranger wasn't a UN force under UNOSOM}}

colspan="4"| Master Parachutist Badge

|colspan="4"| Military Freefall Parachutist Badge

|colspan="4"| Expert Marksmanship badge with rifle component bar

colspan="6"| Special Forces Tab

|colspan="6"| Ranger Tab

colspan="6"| Joint Meritorious Unit Award

|colspan="6"| Valorous Unit Award

= Medal of Honor =

On May 23, 1994, Shughart and Gordon were posthumously decorated with the Medal of Honor for protecting the crew of Super Six Four. They were the first Medal of Honor recipients since the Vietnam War.{{cite web|access-date=June 8, 2009|url=http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/somalia.html|title=Medal of Honor recipients|work=American Medal of Honor recipients for Somalia|publisher=United States Army Center of Military History|date=June 8, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071221032003/https://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/somalia.html |archive-date=21 December 2007}}

Herbert Shughart, Randall Shughart's father, attended the Medal of Honor presentation ceremony at the White House, where he refused to shake hands with U.S. President Bill Clinton.{{Cite news |last=Perlez |first=Jane |author-link=Jane Perlez |date=28 December 2000 |title=For 8 Years, a Strained Relationship With the Military |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/28/politics/28LEGA.html |access-date=18 March 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150527141817/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/28/us/for-8-years-a-strained-relationship-with-the-military.html |archive-date=27 May 2015}} He then proceeded to openly criticize the president, telling him, "You are not fit to be president of the United States. The blame for my son's death rests with the White House and with you. You are not fit to command."{{Cite news |last=Adams |first=James |date=May 29, 1994 |title=Dead Hero's Father Tears into Clinton |work=Sunday Times |url=http://www.urbin.net/EWW/polyticks/pres-mil.html |access-date=March 18, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010503194829/https://www.urbin.net/EWW/polyticks/pres-mil.html |archive-date=3 May 2001}}

=Medal of Honor citation=

File:cmoh army.jpg

{{blockquote|Sergeant First Class Shughart, United States Army, distinguished himself by actions above and beyond the call of duty on 3 October 1993, while serving as a Sniper Team Member, United States Army Special Operations Command with Task Force Ranger in Mogadishu, Somalia. Sergeant First Class Shughart provided precision sniper fires from the lead helicopter during an assault on a building and at two helicopter crash sites, while subjected to intense automatic weapon fire and numerous rocket propelled grenades. While providing critical suppressive fire at the second crash site, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader learned that ground forces were not immediately available to secure the site. Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader unhesitatingly volunteered to be inserted to protect the four critically wounded personnel, despite being well aware of the growing number of enemy personnel closing in on the site. After their third request to be inserted, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader received permission to perform this volunteer mission. When debris and enemy ground fires at the site caused them to abort the first attempt, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader were inserted one hundred meters south of the crash site. Equipped with only his sniper rifle and a pistol, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader, while under intense fire from the enemy, fought their way through a dense maze of shanties and shacks to reach the critically injured crew members. Sergeant First Class Shughart pulled the pilot and the other crew members from the aircraft, establishing a perimeter which placed him and his fellow sniper in the most vulnerable position. Sergeant First Class Shughart used his long range rifle and side arm to kill an undetermined number of attackers while traveling the perimeter, protecting the downed crew. Sergeant First Class Shughart continued his protective fire until he depleted his ammunition and was fatally wounded. His actions saved the pilot's life. Sergeant First Class Shughart's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest standards of military service and reflect great credit upon him-self, his unit and the United States Army.}}

=USNS ''Shughart''=

File:USNS Shughart.jpg

In 1997, the Navy named roll-on/roll-off ship {{USNS|Shughart|T-AKR-295|}} in a ceremony at the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, San Diego. The ceremony was attended by a number of officers and politicians including Shughart's commanding officer at the time of his death; John W. Douglass, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition; Senator Bob Kerrey; and others. The ship was the first "Large Medium Speed Roll On/Roll Off (LMSR) ship" to undergo conversion from a commercial container vessel to a sealift cargo ship.{{Cite web |title=Cargo Ship Shughart (T-AKR 295) Named After Medal of Honor recipient |url=http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/ships/auxiliaries/shughart/naming.txt |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302064812/http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/ships/auxiliaries/shughart/naming.txt |archive-date=March 2, 2007 |access-date=March 12, 2007 |website=Navy Office of Information West |format=Text file}}

=Memorial Bridge=

The Pennsylvania Route 641 bridge over the Big Spring Creek (Pennsylvania) was dedicated May 30, 2024 as the SFC Randall Shughart Memorial Bridge. {{Cite web |title=Gleim to Host Dedication Ceremony of SFC Randall Shughart Memorial Bridge |url=https://www.repgleim.com/News/34172/Press-Releases/Gleim-to-Host-Dedication-Ceremony-of-SFC-Randall-Shughart-Memorial-Bridge-|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240716123517/https://www.repgleim.com/News/34172/Press-Releases/Gleim-to-Host-Dedication-Ceremony-of-SFC-Randall-Shughart-Memorial-Bridge-|archive-date=16 July 2024|access-date=16 July 2024|website=PA State Representative Barb Gleam Press Release}}

References

External links

{{Cite web |title=Carlisle Barracks to dedicate Shughart Hall |url=http://www.carlisle.army.mil/banner/shughart.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030401072553/http://www.carlisle.army.mil/banner/shughart.htm |archive-date=1 April 2003 |website=Carlisle Barracks}}
{{cite web|url=http://www.soc.mil/swcs/museum/medofhon.shtml|title=JFK Special Warfare Museum: Medal of Honor recipients|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071230131621/http://www.soc.mil/swcs/museum/medofhon.shtml|archive-date=December 30, 2007}}
{{cite web|url=http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/intl/somalia/clin0523.txt|title=Remarks by the President at Medal of Honor ceremony|access-date=January 15, 2004|archive-date=July 23, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060723074347/http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/intl/somalia/clin0523.txt|url-status=dead}}
{{cite web|url=http://www.infantry.army.mil/museum/inside_tour/descriptive_tour/17_somalia.htm|title=U.S. Army Infantry Homepage: National Infantry Museum – Operation Restore Hope|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070624185609/https://www.infantry.army.mil/museum/inside_tour/descriptive_tour/17_somalia.htm|archive-date=June 24, 2007}}
{{cite web|url=http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/pa09_shuster/shughart.html|title=Naming of Randall D. Shughart United States Post Office Building in Newville, Pennsylvania|access-date=December 30, 2005|archive-date=May 6, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090506003511/http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/pa09_shuster/shughart.html|url-status=dead}}
{{cite web|url=http://bobmcdowell.com/|title=Special Forces Association Chapter LXIV, SFC Randall Shughart Memorial Chapter, Carlisle, PA|access-date=April 20, 2006|archive-date=May 17, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090517053333/http://bobmcdowell.com/|url-status=dead}}
{{cite web|url=http://www.westperry.org/Page/101|title=Veterans Memorial Grove and The Battle of Mogadishu Monument|work=West Perry's War Monuments|access-date=November 27, 2014|archive-date=December 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206050146/http://www.westperry.org/Page/101|url-status=dead}}
Shughart-Gordon Urban Operations Training Center ("MOUT Site"), US Army Joint Readiness Training Center, Fort Polk, Louisiana.
{{Find a Grave|6062619|work=Medal of Honor recipients}}