Day of the Rangers: The Battle of Mogadishu 25 Years On

Description

Published to mark the battle's 25th anniversary in October 2018, this new book is the definitive history of Operation Gothic Serpent. Focusing on the stories of the soldiers on the ground, and in the air, who fought during the infamous 'Day of the Ranger', as the Somalis referred to the battle, this book reveals the experiences and recollections of the Special Forces units who were involved including the Rangers, Delta operatives and Nightstalker crews. Each stage of the battle is documented in detail and accompanied by a series of detailed maps and technical illustrations clearly illustrating and explaining the action for the reader. Unlike previous books on the subject, Leigh Neville provides a detailed look at the organizations involved, on both sides, and the weapons and equipment employed in the battle including, crucially, a critique of what worked and what didn't. There is also a detailed analysis of the combat tactics employed by both the US forces and the Somalis on the ground, revealing in detail what a state of the art close-quarters battle looked like in 1993. Using recently declassified documents and new interviews with many of the participants, Day of the Ranger, is a fascinating and revealing new history of a battle that would influence American Special Forces for decades to come.

Leigh Neville is an Australian national who has written a number of books on both modern conventional military units and special operations forces serving in Afghanistan and Iraq, their weapons and their vehicles, including six titles for Osprey with several more in development. He has also consulted on military topics for several wargame companies and television documentary makers. He lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife and two dogs. He can be contacted via his website at www.leighneville.com.

This book about the Battle of Mogadishu is a must-read, simple as that. [...] As soon as I finished this title I re-read it. Buy this book. -- Sgt Adam Jackson, Para * Soldier Magazine, February 2019 *