Richard "Alphabet" Kowalewski
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Pfc. Richard Wayne Kowalewski Jr. (March 31, 1973 – October 3, 1993) was a U.S. Army Ranger who served in Mogadishu, Somalia. He was one of the 18 casualties of The Battle of Mogadishu, and noted for being killed instantly when a grenade shot through the main ground convoy he had been driving, severing his left arm and ripping into his torso.
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[edit] Early life
Richard Kowalewski Jr. was born on March 31, 1973. He was from Waynesburg, Pennsylvania. Kowalewski attended Carmichaels Area High School in one of his several hometowns, Carmichaels, Pennsylvania, graduating on June 2, 1992. Just two days after graduating, he went on to enlist in the U.S. Army. He completed Airborne Training and earned the coveted Ranger tab. He served with the Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment at Fort Benning, GA.
[edit] Military service
Kowalewski was one of 18 US military personnel killed in action in Somalia between October 3 and October 4, 1993. He had been part of a Rangers unit that climbed down ropes from a helicopter in support of a mission to capture Somali clan leaders. Kowalewski was killed on the Lost Convoy heading to the site of a downed Black Hawk helicopter. He was 20 years old.
[edit] Book and film portrayals
Richard Kowalewski's role in the Battle of Mogadishu was described in the book Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War. Kowalewski's family and fiancee, Donna Yarish were interviewed by the book's author, Mark Bowden, prior to publication in 1999. In the 2001 motion picture Black Hawk Down, based on the book, Kowalewski was portrayed by Brendan Sexton III.
[edit] See also
- Battle of Mogadishu (1993)
- Black Hawk Down (book)
- Black Hawk Down (film)
- Fall of Mogadishu
- Operation Gothic Serpent
- Somali Civil War
