Bionic Warriors ...buthave they not given enough already?

The Australian

Bionic warriors stay in the fight
Sarah Baxter
March 15, 2005
IN a US military camp on the Kuwaiti border, Captain David Rozelle is waiting for the order to lead the soldiers under his command into Iraq for a new tour of duty.

A cavalry officer, Captain Rozelle lost his right foot in 2003 in Iraq when a mine planted in a dirt road exploded under his Humvee. After a gruelling recovery, he is the first amputee to return to combat duty in Iraq.

He is proud to be pioneering a route back to active service for seriously wounded soldiers.

"I didn't want the terrorists to decide for me whether I stayed in the army or not," he said. "I hope I'm going to break the ice for others to follow. It's not easy but I'm going to prove it can be done."

With the help of a C-Leg, a prosthetic limb with electronic sensors that gives him a normal gait, Captain Rozelle, 33, can outrun most of the men under his command. "There are a few young bucks who can beat me," he said, "but not many."

Medical advances are enabling many more soldiers with amputations to do the previously unthinkable and stay in the military.

"I won't be out raiding houses, but in Iraq the battlefield is everywhere, and I am more than prepared to fight," said Captain Rozelle, who will be stationed at a regimental headquarters.

Lieutenant-General Franklin Hagenbeck, the US Army's deputy chief of staff for personnel, said other servicemen would follow him.

"Many of our seriously injured soldiers are committed to returning to Iraq and Afghanistan," he said. "They take with them invaluable experience and insight. They are great for morale and they have great tactical experience."

On a visit to the Walter Reed Army Medical Centre in Washington in 2003, US President George W. Bush announced: "When we're talking about forced discharge, we're talking about another age. Today, if wounded service members want to remain in uniform and can do the job, the military tries to help them." His comments boosted the hopes of injured servicemen that they would be able to rebuild careers as well as shattered bodies. Yet for many it seemed an impossible goal.

Staff Sergeant Josh Olson, 25, lost his leg right up to the hip bone when his convoy was attacked with a rocket-propelled grenade in northern Iraq. When Mr Bush presented him with a Purple Heart in hospital in December 2003, Sergeant Olson was certain he was on the fast track to a discharge.

A fortnight ago he heard that he had been declared fit for combat. "It's made me feel great," he said. "Everything I've worked for is paying off."

A talented sharp-shooter, he will join the army marksmanship team and train national guardsmen. Sergeant Olson can walk without a cane or crutches, but has yet to be fitted with a running leg.

George Perez, 21, is heading to Afghanistan with his paratroop regiment in May after losing his foot in Fallujah. A photograph of his boot, with its laces still tied and blown metres away from the rest of him, became a famous image in Time magazine.

When his leg became infected it was amputated at the knee and he was fitted with a C-Leg. Although he is haunted by "phantom" pains, he said: "I'm not going to let this little injury stop me doing what I want to do."

Exercise became Captain Rozelle's saviour. He took up skiing and snowboarding and competed in a sprint-distance triathlon - a 500m swim, 12km cycle ride and 3.2km run - before going on to run in the New York marathon.

As he awaited a return to Iraq that is now only days away, Captain Rozelle said: "Emotionally, going back will help me to heal and bring me back to where I left off. But I'm a different person now. I'm more mature and more developed as a human being. I am stronger and fitter than I used to be."

His wife Kim gave birth to a boy two weeks after he went home injured.

"I'm pretty good at the tough-love thing," she said during his recovery. "I have a lot of sympathy for him, but I'm never going to pity him."

When she learnt that he was heading back to the battlefield, "it was a pretty teary day for her", Captain Rozelle said. "But I'm honoured I can go."

Disabled Veterans of America spokesman David Autry warned that Captain Rozelle's example would not be easy to follow. "He has super-trained himself and was always a competitive athlete," he said.

"We don't know yet how many servicemen are going to be able to return to frontline duty. There are more things at work here than just replacing limbs. Some people will not be able to return because of psychological trauma or re-adjustment issues."

The Sunday Times