Lt. (SEAL) Michael P. Murphy, often referred to as “Murph” Or “Mikey” by his close friends and family, was born in Smithtown, New York, May 7th, 1976. On October 22nd, 2007 Lt. Murphy was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously. His parents Daniel Murphy and Maureen Murphy were presented the medal in his honor by the President of the United States, George W. Bush.
According to Michael’s parents it was destiny for Michael to become a Navy SEAL. He had a deep-seated sense of what was right and what was wrong. Michael lived his life starting at a very young age defending in what he believed. As a child Michael always followed the rules and did what he was told. Not one time while he attended school did his parents ever get a call from administration complaining about him, save one time. While attending elementary school a classmate of Michael’s had a disability and due to that that child was often picked on. Michael believed that all people should be treated equally no matter the case, and so Michael did something
extraordinary for a child his age. Michael confronted the bully. Later that day Michael’s parents received a call from the school saying he had gotten into a “scuffle”. Michael believed that he was placed on earth by God to protect those who had the inability to protect themselves, and he did just that.
Michael attended Penn State after he graduated high school with advanced academic placement. Michael graduated from Penn State in 1998 with dual degrees in political science and psychology. A testament to Michael’s work ethic, his first semester with the Nittany Lions he finished with a 3.02 grade point average. In the spring semester of 1995 he finished with a 3.69 GPA which landed him on the dean’s list, something that he would continue to do for five other semesters, including every semester his junior and senior year. Along with that he participated in intramural ice hockey and football in which he led both teams to championships as captain.
Michael was accepted into numerous law schools post-graduation at PSU but he inevitably turned them down. He had something else in mind, he wanted to join the military. Michael wanted to serve and protect our country.
When Michael announced that he wanted to join the armed forces his parents knew they, along with him, were going to be in for a tough ride. Michael’s father fought in the Vietnam War and earned a Purple Heart during his service. The choice of Michael’s was a tough one for his parents, they knew firsthand the implications that come with joining the armed forces. In fact his father, Dan, warned Michael of the dangers of becoming a Navy SEAL in which Michael responded saying “’ You know Dad, I’m not looking to get killed but God forbid if it should happen, understand it happened doing something I loved, and I’d rather that than sit behind a desk for 30 years and hate my life’”. At which point both Dan and Maureen Murphy began to realize there was nothing stopping Michael from achieving his dream.
To become a Navy SEAL you must undergo a test called Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training, also known as BUD/S. What BUD/S is a 6 month training course aimed at weeding out the weak and toughening up the strong, mentally and physically. There are three phases of BUD/S. The first phase lasts 8 weeks where the candidates are put through Basic Conditioning with the last 5 and ½ days, known as “Hell Week”, being the finisher to phase one. There isn’t much to know about Hell Week besides it is pure hell. 5 and ½ days of pure, well, hell. Less than four hours of sleep total combined with non-stop training in freezing cold and wet weather. Hell. Phase 2 is also 8 weeks and is focused on Diving while phase 3 is 9 weeks long and
focuses on Land Warfare. After BUD/S is all said and done, the select few who remain standing tall earn their Trident, their badge signifying they are a SEAL. Legend has it that fewer than one third of all who attempt to go through BUD/S succesfully make it out the other side.
In 2002 Michael P. Murphy fought and battled his way through BUD/S therefore earning his Trident and the honor of becoming a Navy SEAL.
Lt. Murphy had the utmost respect for those that served, whether it be fellow men and women in the armed forces, police officers or firemen. On his uniform Lt. Murphy was always seen wearing a New York City Fire House patch in honor of the men and women who gave their lives protecting those on September 11th, 2001.
Lt. Murphy served multiple tours overseas, Jordan, Qatar and Djibouti on the Horn of Africa to name a few, with his last one being in Asadabad, Afghanistan on June 28th, 2005.
He along with 3 other of his men from SEAL Team 10 being Gunner’s Mate 2nd Class (SEAL) Danny Dietz, Sonar Technician 2nd Class (SEAL) Matthew Axelson and Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class (SEAL) Marcus Luttrell were sent on a mission in which they were tasked with a reconnaissance mission in the Hindu Kush mountain range of Afghanistan, deep behind enemy lines. This mission was named Operation Redwing and occurred on June 27th and 28th, 2005. Their mission was to scout for a man named Ahmad Shah who led a guerrilla group of terrorists called the “Mountain Tigers”. The four men were dropped in the mountains and began going to work.
After the SEALs were dropped in the mountains by a C-130 Hercules troop transport aircraft, the men hunkered down in what seemed to be an uninhabitable forested area only to be walked in on by three goat herders. The SEALs captured the goat herders and after some contemplation they decided to let the herders go. The SEALs then chose to relocate in an attempt to stay hidden from possible enemies. There was a chance that the herders may have been local nationalists who align themselves with the Taliban, which is exactly what happened.
Shortly after relocating, a large force (anywhere from fifty to one hundred Taliban fighters) appeared searching for the four Navy SEALs. Eventually they were found and fighting ensued.
The fight was short, lasting only a few hours. The SEALs fought valiantly, heroically, almost like something out of a comic book. The odds were against them, the Taliban had high
ground advantage and there was no place to go besides down the steep mountainside or towards the enemy. The SEALs did all they could to survive. They took down as many Taliban as they could only for it to seem like two more appeared for every one that fell. The SEALs kept moving cover to cover down the mountainside while getting fired upon without end. All four men suffered numerous gunshot wounds and other injuries stemming from the results of jumping twenty to thirty feet to maintain cover. One SEAL, Gunner’s Mate 2nd Class (SEAL) Danny Dietz, attempted to make a call back to base to request backup only to end up getting shot in the hand, shattering his thumb. Despite the vast array of injuries they all, including Lt. Murphy, carried on.
Lt. Murphy had always been the type of man to put others well before himself. His mother once stated that if her son died along the lines of combat it would be because he was saving another’s life.
In the heavily forested Hindu Kush mountains of Afghanistan where the four SEALs were it was difficult, nearly impossible, to get a hold of their base of operations. The only way they could request for backup was if they could find a clearing, successfully get a call off and alert the men at base of their location. While the SEALs were being chased down in the mountains they found the clearing they were looking for. Unfortunately the SEALs were surrounded by Taliban making it almost suicide to go and get the call off. Lt. Murphy didn’t care for such things. He took it upon himself to do whatever he could to get his men out of there.
Lt. Murphy grabbed the transmitter his team was carrying and ran to the clearing in an attempt to contact their base, which he did. The whole time Lt. Murphy was getting fired upon by the numerous Taliban fighters, but he didn’t care. All he cared about was the safety of his men. Once he got a hold of their base he began notifying them of the SEALs whereabouts. During this Lt. Murphy was shot in the back causing him to drop the transmitter. Quickly he picked the transmitter back up and continued to tell the base of their location. At the end of the call before he hung up the phone to get back to fighting Lt. Murphy uttered two words “Thank You” and then got back into the fight. This heroic act by Lt. Murphy caused him to suffer multiple severe wounds which would lead to his death.
Along with the death of Lt. Michael Murphy, two of the other SEALs, Gunner’s Mate 2nd Class (SEAL) Danny Dietz, and the other being Sonar Technician 2nd Class (SEAL) Matthew Axelson, also gave the ultimate sacrifice. All three of these men fought valiantly until their final breath.
Shortly thereafter an MH-47 Chinook helicopter carrying eight Navy SEALs and eight Army Night Stalkers arrived. These men were the reinforcements Lt. Murphy was asking for to get his men out. Sadly these sixteen men never made it to the fight to help the SEALs. Before the helicopter could touch down, a Taliban fighter armed with a rocket launched a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) in the direction of the MH-47 Chinook, causing the helicopter to crash into the face of the mountain.
One man survived this firefight. Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class (SEAL) Marcus Luttrell. The only man left from the four person SEAL team. Luttrell was blasted over a ridge by an RPG causing him to lose consciousness. After regaining consciousness he crawled seven miles down the mountain avoiding the Taliban for almost a full day. Luttrell suffered from multiple injuries. He was shot in one leg and had shrapnel in both legs. He also received three cracked vertebrae causing him to be temporarily paralyzed from the waist down. Eventually he arrived in a village who aided him. The villagers hid and protected Luttrell from the Taliban even though the Taliban visited the village several times demanding they hand him over. One of the villagers made his way to a Marine outpost with a note written by Luttrell of his whereabouts. Quickly the U.S. forces launched an operation to rescue him. Luttrell would go on to tell the story of these brave men in the book Lone Survivor – the Eyewitness Accounts of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10. Luttrell would also assist in the making of the movie “Lone Survivor” along with multiple interviews and talks regarding the mission.
Here are the names and ranks of the 19 brave warriors who lost their lives on June 28, 2005.
Navy SEALs
SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 1, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Lt. (SEAL) Michael P. Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, N.Y.
Sonar Technician (Surface) 2nd Class (SEAL) Matthew G. Axelson, 29, of Cupertino, Calif.
Machinist Mate 2nd Class (SEAL) Eric S. Patton, 22, of Boulder City, Nev.
Senior Chief Information Systems Technician (SEAL) Daniel R. Healy, 36, of Exeter, N.H.
Quartermaster 2nd Class (SEAL) James Suh, 28, of Deerfield Beach, Fla.
SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2, Virginia Beach, Va.
Gunner’s Mate 2nd Class (SEAL) Danny P. Dietz, 25, of Littleton, Colo.
SEAL Team 10, Virginia Beach, Va.
Chief Fire Controlman (SEAL) Jacques J. Fontan, 36, of New Orleans, La.
Lt. Cmdr. (SEAL) Erik S. Kristensen, 33, of San Diego, Calif.
Electronics Technician 1st Class (SEAL) Jeffery A. Lucas, 33, of Corbett, Ore.
Lt. (SEAL) Michael M. McGreevy Jr., 30, of Portville, N.Y.
Hospital Corpsman 1st Class (SEAL) Jeffrey S. Taylor, 30, of Midway, W.Va.
Army Night Stalkers
3rd Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), Hunter Army Air Field, Ga.
Staff Sgt. Shamus O. Goare, 29, of Danville, Ohio.
Chief Warrant Officer Corey J. Goodnature, 35, of Clarks Grove, Minn.
Sgt. Kip A. Jacoby, 21, of Pompano Beach, Fla.
Sgt. 1st Class Marcus V. Muralles, 33, of Shelbyville, Ind.
Maj. Stephen C. Reich, 34, of Washington Depot, Conn.
Sgt. 1st Class Michael L. Russell, 31, of Stafford, Va.
Chief Warrant Officer Chris J. Scherkenbach, 40, of Jacksonville, Fla.
HQ Company, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), Fort Campbell, Ky.
Master Sgt. James W. Ponder III, 36, of Franklin, Tenn.
References/Sources
Luttrell, Marcus, and Patrick Robinson. Lone Survivor – the Eyewitness Accounts of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10. Little, Brown and Company, 2007.
Mallon, Morganne. "Penn State alumnus Michael P. Murphy lives on through family, friends and 'Lone Survivor." Daily Collegian, 27 Jan. 2014, www.collegian.psu.edu/arts_and_entertainment/article_2044b432-86f3-11e3-8e06-001a4bcf6878.html.
"Medal of Honor Presentation to Michael Murphy." USA Patriotism! YouTube, 15 Sept. 2011, www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM2tC5wMkoQ.
"Medal of Honor Presentation to Michael Murphy." YouTube, 15 Sept. 2011.
"Medal of Honor: Lieutenant Michael P. Murphy (SEAL), USN." Medal of honor, USN Recipients, www.navy.mil/ah_online/moh/murphy.html.
Williams, Gary. SEAL of Honor: Operation Red Wings and the Life of LT. Michael P. Murphy (USN). Naval Institute Press, 2010.
