Mike M

Norm “Hoot” Hooten, famously portrayed by Eric Bana in the film Black Hawk Down, is a retired US Army Master Sergeant and former Green Beret and Delta Force operator. He took part in multiple deployments, including the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu as part of Task Force Ranger. During that intense fight, he led a team in the initial assault and subsequent efforts to reach the crash site of Super 61. After more than 20 years of service, Hooten transitioned to civilian life and later earned a doctorate in pharmacy. He worked at VA medical centers, applying a combined-arms approach to help fellow veterans dealing with PTSD, chronic pain, and substance-use challenges. He also co-founded the veteran-owned Hooten Young brand, which produces premium cigars and whiskey that honor military history and service. His career reflects a continued commitment to the people beside him, both in combat and afterward. Respect.

This weekend marked the 33rd anniversary of Operation Gothic Serpent and the Battle of Mogadishu, October 3-4, 1993. The fight now commonly referred to as Black Hawk Down cost 18 men from Task Force Ranger, including Rangers from the 75th Ranger Regiment, operators from Delta Force, and aircrews of the 160th SOAR, Roughly 70-100 were wounded in the overnight battle. It was the longest sustained firefight American soldiers had fought since Vietnam. The battle produced two Medals of Honor, dozens of Silver Stars (including 58 upgraded awards to Rangers alone), multiple Distinguished Flying Crosses, and many Bronze Stars with “V” devices, making it one of the most decorated single actions in US military history.

33 years ago today, on October 3, 1993, during the Battle of Mogadishu, Delta Force operators Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart were flying over the city in a Black Hawk, providing cover for Task Force Ranger. After one helicopter was shot down, a second, Super 64, with CWO Mike Durant at the controls, was hit by an RPG and crashed in a neighborhood swarming with militia. Ground forces could not reach the site. Gordon and Shughart asked three times to be inserted, and permission was finally given. They fast-roped in roughly 100 meters from the wreck, armed with sniper rifles and sidearms, and fought their way to the crash. They pulled the badly injured Durant from the cockpit, set up a perimeter, and held off a much larger force until their ammunition ran out. Both were killed. Durant was captured and later released, and without them, he almost certainly would have died in the wreckage. On May 23, 1994, they became the first Medal of Honor recipients since the Vietnam War, and the only soldiers from Operation Gothic Serpent to receive it. Their citations record actions above and beyond the call of duty under intense enemy fire, and a choice to go in when no one else could. They would not leave a comrade behind, and 33 years later, that choice is still the standard. Never forgotten.