Friendly Fire by Captain Michael S. Daftarian

"Nothing can compare to the feeling that you've just bombed your own troops, the very guys you came to support." (Daftarian 22)

In August 2002, thirty two year old Captain Michael S. Daftarian, was in the U.S Air force. He was deployed to Bagram, Afghanistan for six months. This short story is written in his perspective about his experience during the war. He explains the challenges of flying an A10 Warthog in the extreme conditions of the war. He talks about what it's like to bomb large masses of land and people, and how hard it is to aim on point. He talks about what he has to go through while on a mission, and how he has to be exact with everything he does.

My reaction to the story is that it's really difficult to be in the Air Force. First of all, you have to be extremely dedicated to even join the army, but then to fly around bombing large masses of people and trying to hit the enemies without hitting any of your own men would be nearly impossible. The men and women that dedicate their lives for our country are very noble and heroic. Many people look up to the soldiers. Michael's story was very informative and educated. He was very good at what he did, and he had a great story to tell.

The connection between Friendly Fire and Fallen Angels was similar because of the way that Michael described what he was going through. Michael and Perry both told their story in their own way, but they talked about a lot of the same things. Also, in Friendly Fire Michael fears that he accidentally fires on his own people, but in the end he found out that he didn't. In Fallen Angels, there is a similar situation where Perry and his squad open fire on their own troops by accident, but unfortunately they actually ended up killing some of their own people.