Ratzlaff, Thomas Arthur
Male
Verified Senior Chief Petty Officer Thomas Arthur Ratzlaff, 34, was a U.S. Navy SEAL assigned to Naval Special Warfare Development Group. He was killed on August 6, 2011, when his helicopter was shot down in Wardak province, Afghanistan.
Their Story
Thomas Arthur Ratzlaff was a Senior Chief Petty Officer in the United States Navy, a native of Green Forest, Arkansas. He served with the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, an elite unit commonly referred to as SEAL Team Six. According to his service record, his career included deployments to Afghanistan, the Philippines, and the Horn of Africa.
On the night of August 6, 2011, Ratzlaff was aboard a U.S. Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter, call sign Extortion 17. The aircraft was on a mission to reinforce a unit of U.S. Army Rangers engaged in a firefight in the Tangi Valley of Wardak province. According to a U.S. Department of Defense investigation, the helicopter was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade fired from the ground and crashed, killing all 38 people on board.
The incident occurred during Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan that began in October 2001. The mission that night was part of a broader counter-insurgency effort against Taliban forces in the region. The Tangi Valley was known as an area of insurgent activity.
The crash of Extortion 17 resulted in the single greatest loss of life for U.S. forces in the Afghanistan war. The Pentagon released the names of the deceased, which included 17 SEALs, five Naval Special Warfare support personnel, three Air Force Special Tactics airmen, five U.S. Army aircrew members, seven Afghan commandos, and an Afghan interpreter. Memorial services were held across the United States.
Ratzlaff was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with Valor and the Purple Heart. His name is inscribed on the Navy SEAL Memorial at the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida, and on a memorial in his hometown of Green Forest.
Explore Further
Senior Chief Ratzlaff was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001–2014). The conflict concluded in December 2014. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.
Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.
