Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins

[ricardo]

Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins, their gruff but revered squad leader, stepped out of the Humvee and walked toward the first stranger. Then an Army medic stepped out of the back seat, moving toward the second.

As Aijo tried to keep track of both soldiers, Atkins unexpectedly began grappling with the first Iraqi just a few feet away. Atkins slammed the man to the ground and threw himself on top of him.

“The thing that became confusing was that once they hit the ground, the way that Travis began positioning his body, it just seemed strange to me,” Aijo recalled. “That’s when the detonation happened.”

Grappling with the enemy, knowing he was going to die but hopefully his fellow soldiers would not be harmed.

I salute Travis Atkins