One Last Salute for a Fallen Hero

By Air Force 2nd Lt. Natassia Cherne

Nuristan Provincial Reconstruction Team Public Affairs

NURISTAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan (December 8, 2009) – One hundred and sixty four servicemembers from Forward Operating Base Kalagush somberly stood side-by-side to render one last salute to their fallen comrade, 26-year-old U.S. Army Spc. Elijah Rao, from Lake Oswego, Ore., Dec. 5, who was killed by an improvised explosive device that day.

Rao was a meteorological specialist, but served as a rifleman and the “eyes and ears” of the intelligence shop while patrolling with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 2nd Battalion, 77th Field Artillery Regiment, Task Force Steel.

“He had the ability to engage the people and gain the confidence of the people out there, because he was just that kind of guy that people felt comfortable approaching and talking to, even though he was a shy guy himself,” said U.S. 

Army Lt. Col. Michael Forsyth, 2nd Bn., 77th FA Regt. commander and native of Mayfield, Ky. “He took my dictum of treating everyone with dignity and respect very seriously, which he demonstrated on a daily basis.”

Servicemembers from the 2nd Bn., 77 FA Regt.; Nuristan Provincial Reconstruction Team; Military Police from 3rd Platoon, 984^th Military Police Company, 759^th MP Battalion; and Marine Corps Embedded Training Team 5-5 were among the ones to say goodbye. One by one, each servicemember waited for hours in the cold for an opportunity to render a single salute as fellow Soldiers walked past Rao’s remains. 

“On the battlefield, Rao was super efficient, although his job was that of a weatherman he had a knack for gathering intelligence, which was very helpful to the mission,” said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Kyle Riley, Rao’s platoon sergeant, and native of Clintontownship, Mich. “He was something special...he was an asset. When we were at key leader engagements and I would run out of gas, I would look to him to take the floor.”

Rao, who was boarded onto a UH-60 Black Hawk to start his journey back to the United States, where the dignified transfer of his remains will take place at Dover Air Force Base.

“He was dependable, he was a rock, and with him having previous combat experience, he was able to be a mentor for a lot of Soldiers in our platoon who were on their first deployment,” Riley said.  “He was more than just a peer to his team. He was someone that the lower enlisted looked up to.”

“Rao was the best our nation had to offer, he will be missed in the battalion,” Forsyth said. 

NURISTAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan- One hundred and sixty four servicemembers from Forward Operating Base Kalagush somberly stood side-by-side to render one last salute to their fallen comrade, U.S. Army Spc. Elijah Rao, from Lake Oswego, Ore., the night of Dec. 5. Rao, was killed in action by an improvised explosive device in Nuristan Province that same day. (U.S. Air Force/photo SrA Ashley Hawkins)  

NURISTAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan- U.S. Army Spc. Elijah Rao, a native of Lake Oswego, Ore., and meteorological specialist attached to the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery maneuver platoon, “Nightmare”, 2nd Battalion, 77th Field Artillery Regiment, Task Force Steel, (right) and U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Kyle Riley, the platoon sergeant for the Nightmare maneuver platoon, from Clintontownship, Mich., (left) stand with local villagers from the Parwii village, Aug. 9. Rao, was killed in action Dec. 5, by an improvised explosion device in Nuristan Province. (U.S. Air Force/photo 2nd Lt Natassia Cherne)  

NURISTAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan- A UH-60 Black Hawk carries the remains of U.S. Army Spc. Elijah Rao, a native of Lake Oswego, Ore., and meteorological specialist attached to the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery maneuver platoon, “Nightmare”, 2nd Battalion, 77th Field Artillery Regiment, Task Force Steel, to Bagram Air Force Base the night of Dec. 5. Rao, was killed in action that day by an improvised explosion device in Nuristan Province. (U.S. Air Force/photo SrA Ashley Hawkins)