PDA

View Full Version : A Silver Star for Princeton native



thedrifter
09-12-08, 07:42 AM
A Silver Star for Princeton native
Friday, September 12, 2008
BY ROBERT STERN

The deadly, close-range firefight that destroyed Capt. Gianoulis "John" Roussos' armored Humvee in southwestern Iraq lasted no more than 90 seconds, the Princeton-born Marine said.

Roussos put his own life on the line as he bolted from the Humvee to draw fire away from the four men under his command in the crippled vehicle, gunning down two of the insurgents along the way in the bloody March 7 encounter.

The maneuver worked and earned Roussos the Silver Star Medal, which he will receive today in a ceremony at Camp Lejeune, N.C., said 1st Lt. Philip W. Klay, spokesman for the 2nd Marine Di vision.

The Silver Star is the U.S. military's third-highest honor for heroism under fire.

Far more important than any award, Roussos said, was that he and the other Marines of Bravo Company, 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, engaged in that showdown survived it without injury.

Roussos said he doesn't think he did anything beyond what his position called for in that situation.

"I just kind of view it as doing my job," he said. Even so, he considers it his most unnerving confrontation in Iraq.

"This incident was very intense for that one minute, minute-and-a- half," said Roussos, 27, who has served three separate tours in Iraq since 2005. "It was very intense fire. I look at it as luck that I didn't get hit."

When the dust settled, all five attacking insurgents lay dead, their stockpile of armor-piercing ammu nition, grenades, sniper rifles and a rocket-propelled-grenade launcher taken out of commission from their disabled pickup truck.

"It was a miracle that none of us got hurt," said Roussos, considering the firefight took place in open desert across a distance no longer than a football field.

Roussos credits the actions of his fellow Marines for fending off the attack unscathed.

"We wouldn't be here today if it weren't for my guys," said Roussos, who graduated from Valley Forge Military Academy instead of attending his hometown Princeton High School. Later, he graduated from Norwich University, a military academy in Vermont.

"Luckily, none of my guys were hurt," he said.

That's largely a credit to Rous sos' valor, said Maj. Fred Courtney, executive officer for the 2nd Recon naissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division.

Roussos "knowingly and willingly exposed himself to enemy fire with the intent of drawing fire away from his machine gunner and driver, and risked his life for his men," Courtney said in a press re lease.

He "exemplifies what you think a Marine should be," Courtney said. "He's charismatic, extremely knowledgeable and dedicated to the Marines and his job. He has fierce determination when it comes to mission accomplishment and won't let anything stand in his way."

John Roussos' younger brother, Theo Roussos of Princeton Township, said he and the rest of the family are proud of his conduct and glad he has served his country without combat injury.

"I think it's so cool," Theo Roussos said of his sibling's Silver Star. "I have total respect for my brother."


Contact Robert Stern at rstern@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5731.

Ellie

thedrifter
09-13-08, 05:30 AM
Marine is honored for bravery
Comments 0 | Recommend 1
Silver Star awarded to John Roussos
September 13, 2008 - 12:48AM
JENNIFER HLAD
DAILY NEWS STAFF

Capt. John Roussos was awarded a Silver Star on Friday for his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action." But Roussos said the praise should go to his Marines.

"My driver and my machine gunner did more than I did that day," Roussos said. "I was just the guy who got out and ran like a jackass toward the guys with guns."

On March 7, Roussos was serving as platoon commander of 1st Platoon, Bravo Company, 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion in Iraq. The Marines had just started a zone reconnaissance operation when one of their helicopters noticed a suspicious vehicle, Roussos said.

When the helicopter began tracking the pickup truck, the truck fled. Roussos and the other vehicles chased the truck for about 11 miles. Then, when Roussos' vehicle was about 150 meters away from the truck, a man inside pulled up a blue tarp, revealing a machine gunner lying in wait. They began firing.

The turret gunner in Roussos' vehicle fired back as the insurgents hit the Marine truck's engine. The Marine vehicle came to a rest about 50 meters from the pickup truck, as the Marine gunner kept firing, killing one insurgent and wounding one or two others.

When the turret gunner ran out of ammunition, Roussos opened the door and began running toward the insurgent truck, shooting with his M4 rifle. He killed two of them, allowing his gunner to reload and resume fire.

The Marines eventually killed all five insurgents in the vehicle. At least two were foreign fighters, Roussos said - one from Syria and one from Saudi Arabia. Marines also found an improvised explosive device, a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, roughly 7,000 rounds of machine gun ammunition, about 2,000 rounds of AK-47 ammunition, 20 hand grenades, two machine guns and a sniper rifle in the vehicle, Roussos said.

The Marines believe the men were either an insurgent cell running guns from across the nearby border with Saudi Arabia or a cell coming to conduct operations in Iraq.

Roussos "did exactly the right thing at exactly the right time," Maj. Gen. Richard Tryon, commanding general of 2nd Marine Division, said Friday.

"I couldn't be prouder of this guy," he said. "What he did, he did reflexively. ... He wasn't out gunning for an award."

The two other Marines involved in the incident also were honored for their actions, Tryon said, and Roussos told him it was those two men "who are really the heroes."

"(Roussos') humility in accepting this award speaks volumes about his character," Tryon said. "He is one of what I consider to be thousands of unsung heroes in our rank."

Contact interactive content editor and military reporter Jennifer Hlad at 910-219-8467. Visit www.jdnews.com to comment on this report.

Ellie