| At 10:47 pm on Saturday, April 19, 2003, the door of the Cessna Citation carrying Chief Warrant Officers Ronald D. Young, Jr. and David Williams home from Iraq opened, and they stepped out onto the tarmac at Fort Hood and into the arms of their families. They had been taken as prisoners of war on March 23 when their Apache Longbow helicopter went down in Iraq, and remained in captivity for 20 days. They were rescued, along with 5 other soldiers, near Tikrit by U.S. Marines on April 15.
Their reunion was quiet and heartfelt, attended by only a few military personnel, a pool TV photographer, and a pool still photographer (myself). They were then taken by bus across the airfield, where trumpets, banners, and a crowd of at least 1,500 awaited to celebrate their return. |
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| U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer David Williams meets his wife Michelle. | ||||||
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| U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young, Jr. embraces his parents, Ronald and Kaye Young. | ||||||
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| © 2003 Alex Jones / The Daily Texan. For copies suitable for publication, send me an email. |