What They Don't Tell You About Your First Firefight in Afghanistan

In Episode 45 of Ask A Vet, we sit down with Aaron Hinds, a Georgia kid who turned down a Navy SEAL contract and a nuclear program to do the one thing he'd wanted since he was fourteen: be an infantryman.

Aaron takes us from Sand Hill at Fort Benning to the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, through brutal pre-deployment "tryouts" where only two dozen men made the cut, and into Afghanistan's fighting season at FOB Shank, better known as Rocket City. He shares what it's really like the first time rounds snap over your head, the frustrating reality of rules of engagement, the 45-minute firefight that made it into Ricky Schroder's docuseries "The Fighting Season," and the unforgettable Special Forces soldier in a Captain America t-shirt.

But the heart of this episode is what came after. Aaron opens up about losing more friends at home than he did overseas, finding a therapist through the nonprofit HickStrong, getting his service dog Ace through Healing for Heroes, and learning that the same mind that survived a war can be pointed at helping people. As Aaron puts it: "I can do great things and I can do terrible things…and I have to decide which one I'm gonna let control my actions."

If you're a veteran who's struggling, you are not alone. Reach out to the resources below or dial 988 and press 1 for the Veterans Crisis Line.

🎖️ Resources mentioned in this episode: 

• HickStrong (free therapy for veterans & first responders): https://www.hicksstrong.org/

• Healing for Heroes (service dogs for veterans): https://www.healing4heroes.org/

• Veterans Crisis Line: Dial 988, then press 1

“The Fighting Season” (2015): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4006826

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CHAPTERS 

00:33 – Growing up in Stapleton, Georgia 

03:11 – Turning down a SEAL contract to join the infantry 

06:05 – Fort Benning: Drill sergeants, weather machines & "Chuck Norris" 

15:10 – Fort Drum & the 10th Mountain Division 

19:18 – Training to fight: glass houses & complex simplicity 

21:30 – Tryouts: competing for a slot to deploy 

27:03 – Shipping out: Ireland, Romania & landing at Bagram 

29:23 – FOB Shank, a.k.a. Rocket City 

36:46 – Rules of Engagement

39:22 – Fighting Season 

51:00 – The 45-minute firefight & the B-1 show of force 

1:02:04 – The A-10 pilot with the angelic voice 

1:04:37 – Pitch Perfect, surf & turf Fridays and badminton diplomacy 

1:12:01 – The frustration of ROE 

1:14:34 – Coming home 

1:31:51 – Therapy, HickStrong & a service dog named Ace 

1:43:17 – Final Thoughts & Reflections 

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