Durant: US should have kept presence in Afghanistan

Sep. 19—PRICEVILLE — The U.S. Army helicopter pilot who was shot down, captured and later released in Somalia in 1993 called the American withdrawal from Afghanistan tragic and believes the U.S. should have kept a presence in the country where more than 2,400 military personnel were killed over the past 20 years.

"It's truly tragic when you think about all of the effort that went into stabilizing the country," said retired Chief Warrant Officer 4 Michael Durant before a POW/MIA Recognition Day ceremony in Priceville on Thursday afternoon.

Durant's harrowing experience in Somalia was depicted in the 2001 movie "Black Hawk Down," based on a book by Mark Bowden in 1999.

"(Our time in Afghanistan) was all thrown away," Durant said. "Certainly there was a more organized way to begin our withdrawal and measure how effective the Afghan military forces could be without us, instead of just completely abandoning everything. But I don't see it as a surrender. It was a political decision, not a military decision."

President Joe Biden imposed a deadline for removal of troops by Aug. 31.

"Our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines fought valiantly there for 20 years and were successful," Durant said. "The will of the political apparatus that we have that directs our military and guides us — we can't control that. All we can do was to do our mission, and unfortunately the commitment to remain there was gone and we were told to leave. That is not a surrender."

Durant, 60, called the U.S. giving up Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan "the biggest mistake of all."

"We had a strategic presence there, a foothold in the region," he said. "(Afghanistan) is surrounded by Iran, Pakistan, China. (Bagram Air Base) was one of the most developed airfields in the world. It was not really requiring that much to sustain it. ... If you can maintain a strategic presence with that kind of investment, to me that would made a lot of sense to hold onto."

Durant, who is president and CEO of Pinnacle Solutions, an aerospace engineering and product development firm in Huntsville, said the nation needs to keep an eye on Iraq, Syria, North Korea, China and Russia.

"Iraq is not completely stable," he said. "Let's hope we don't get into a conflict. It's never good."

Durant learned to fly helicopters at Fort Rucker in southeast Alabama. He has logged more than 3,700 flying hours including 1,400 in night vision goggles.

He lauded the security partnership announced last week between the U.S., United Kingdom and Australia that includes the sharing of nuclear submarine technology with Australia.

"The more we can do to help our allies is good. We can't control everything around the whole world. We need our strategic allies. We can count on Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, some of our strong allies. We have many," he said.

Durant told the crowd of about 100 people recognizing prisoners of war and those missing in action that the commitment U.S. military personnel have for our country is immeasurable.

"There are stories of generations of courageous patriots who faced great danger. They've put aside their fears of tremendous risk to themselves and carried out countless missions in the defense of our freedom, our allies, our values and all we hold dear," he said. "These selfless heroes epitomize the American spirt in its purest form. Many gave their lives for these causes. Their sacrifice caused great pain for their families and their friends, created a wound that will never completely be healed.

"To the families of the missing in action, that pain and grief can be even harder to deal with because there is no end to it all. There is no evidence or information about their loved ones. Defending the lives of those left behind is an eternal conflict of hope and despair, uncertain that by some chance their family member or friend will someday return home."

He said the military and government remain committed to finding answers.

"Because of that commitment, we've actually been successful to bring closure to some of the thousands of families who are waiting and hoping for any information about their loved ones," he said. "No one is left behind. We must remain committed to never abandoning the search for our service members missing and unaccounted for. They will never be forgotten."

Ret. Lt. Col. George Kunkel, who first served with Durant in the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment in Fort Campell, Kentucky, beginning in 1988, introduced Durant at the recognition ceremony at the Veterans Memorial on Alabama 67.

Durant called the screenplay of "Black Hawk Down" "accurate enough."

"I read the script and provided some input," he said.

He said he doesn't use the word "torture" in describing his treatment while being held captive for 11 days by Somali militia loyal to warlord Mohammed Aidid. Durant was shot in the arm while being held captive, Kunkel said.

"It wasn't a pleasant experience," Durant said. "I wasn't treated very well. But I never use that word (torture). I was treated pretty harshly. I was injured badly (sustaining a broken femur and vertebrae). It didn't take much to treat me harshly."

Priceville Mayor Sam Heflin said it was a special day for his town to have Durant address the ceremony.

"It's certainly an honor to have him here in Priceville," he said. "He's a true American hero."

— mike.wetzel@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2442. Twitter @DD_Wetzel.