- Richard "Alphabet" Kowalewski
Pfc. Richard Wayne Kowalewski Jr. (
March 31 1973 –October 3 1993 ) was a U.S. Army Ranger who served inMogadishu ,Somalia . He was one of the 18 American soldiers killed during the The Battle of Mogadishu, killed instantly when a rocket propelled grenade shot through the main ground convoy he had been driving, severing his left arm and ripping into his torso.Early life
Richard Kowalewski Jr. was born on
March 31 1973 . He was fromWaynesburg, Pennsylvania . Kowalewski attendedCarmichaels Area High School in one of his several hometowns, Carmichaels, Pennsylvania, graduating onJune 2 ,1992 . Just two days after graduating, he went on to enlist in theUnited States Army . He completed Airborne Training and earned the coveted Ranger tab. He served with the Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion,75th Ranger Regiment at Fort Benning, GA.Military service
Kowalewski was one of 18 US military personnel killed in action in Somalia between
October 3 andOctober 4 ,1993 . He had been part of a Rangers unit that climbed down ropes from a helicopter in support of a mission to capture Somali clan leaders. Kowalewski was killed on the Lost Convoy heading to the site of a downed Black Hawk helicopter. He was 20 years old.Book and film portrayals
Richard Kowalewski's role in the
Battle of Mogadishu was described in the book . Kowalewski's family and fiancee, Donna Yarish were interviewed by the book's author,Mark Bowden , prior to publication in 1999. In the 2001 motion picture "Black Hawk Down", based on the book, Kowalewski was portrayed byBrendan Sexton III .ee also
*
Battle of Mogadishu (1993)
*Black Hawk Down (book)
*Black Hawk Down (film)
*Fall of Mogadishu
*Operation Gothic Serpent
*Somali Civil War References
*Bowden, Mark, "", Atlantic Monthly Press (1999)
*http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/rwkowalewski.htm
*http://www.nightstalkers.com/tfranger/memorial/kowalewski/index.html
*http://www.hollywood.com/movie/Black_Hawk_Down/416131
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