From the Army Times:
On Oct. 11, as part of Operation Rugged Sarak in eastern Afghanistan, Moynihan’s team was charged with guarding the northern flank of OP Shal, according to the narrative accompanying his award.
When the team came under fire, Moynihan led his soldiers to identify 12 enemy positions in the mountainous terrain across the valley and deliver two tube-launched, optically tracked, wire-guided missile strikes.
Afterward, Moynihan took control of an abandoned and exposed machine-gun position so he could suppress the enemy fire. As the enemy tried to zero in on his position, Moynihan continued to fire, performing barrel changes, linking ammunition and sustaining a “deadly accurate” rate of fire on the enemy target, according to the narrative.
The next day, Moynihan identified an armed enemy fighter moving into a fortified position across the valley. He immediately took control of an M249 squad automatic weapon and killed the enemy fighter, according to the narrative.
As the enemy lobbed mortars at the OP, Moynihan stood his ground and marked enemy positions for his soldiers to fire two more TOW missile strikes, killing seven enemy fighters.
He then slowed the progress of the enemy to support his platoon mates by using suppressive fire, fragmentary grenades and Claymore mines.
The same evening, the enemy launched another attack, this time using rocket-propelled grenades and AK47 rifles at close range to try to overrun the northern flank of the OP, according to the narrative.
Moynihan again exposed himself to enemy fire, moving through the danger zone and rallying his men to run a counterattack on the enemy. Moynihan fired his M4 carbine, threw grenades and detonated Claymore mines before taking control of an abandoned SAW position.
However, the “heaviest and most coordinated attack” was yet to come, according to the narrative.
On Oct. 13, as the enemy once again attacked the OP, Moynihan exposed himself to danger again to acquire and pass grid coordinates to the platoon forward observer. A mortar slammed into the ground 10 meters from his fighting position before a second mortar found its mark, severely wounding three Afghan and five American soldiers and knocking Moynihan unconscious.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member