Eric L. Haney
 |
Retired Command Sergeant Major Eric L. Haney is a security consultant, best known for being one of the early members of the U.S. Army’s elite counter-terrorist unit, 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta; more commonly known as Delta Force.
Haney joined Delta Force in 1978, and served for eight years. He then left the unit and served as a Command Sergeant Major until his final retirement in 1989. Often referred to as a founding member of Delta Force, Haney was actually one of the early members accepted into the unit's training program prior to Delta Force becoming an operational unit.[citation needed] He was a member when it became operational.
After the terrorist attacks of September 11th 2001, Haney became a regular television commentator on military affairs.
Field operations
While a Delta Force member, Haney participated in a number of combat actions. The most notable are listed below, as described in his book Inside Delta Force.
Operation Eagle Claw
In 1980, when the United States attempted to end the Iran Hostage Crisis with a commando raid (Operation Eagle Claw), Haney was one of the Delta operators to take part in the mission.[citation needed] He was inside the C-130 tanker/transport aircraft when it was hit by a helicopter after the mission was aborted.
Vietnam POWs
Haney claims that Delta Force was being readied for a POW rescue mission in roughly 1980, to rescue prisoners which North Vietnam had secretly held captive at the end of the Vietnam War.[citation needed] He claims that there was extensive specific evidence of their existence and specific rescue mission plans being prepared, but that the missions were repeatedly compromised by public statements by others and senior leadership unwilling to approve the missions.
Haney's claim regarding the POWs existence is one of the most specific of a wide range of so far unconfirmed stories regarding those alleged POWs. See for more specifics Missing In Action.
Honduras
In 1981, Haney claims to have been deployed to Honduras with a group of Honduran Special Forces along with two teams from his Delta Force troop to track down and kill a group of Nicaraguan/Sandinista-supported Honduran guerrilla fighters allegedly led by an unidentified American. Haney states that his team did find and kill the guerrillas, and that he personally delivered the fatal shot that killed the guerilla leader.[citation needed] After the assault, the unidentified American turned out to be a U.S. Army Special Forces soldier whom Haney had met during the Delta Selection Process. Haney believes the soldier was recruited and ultimately betrayed by the CIA[citation needed]; and at the time of his death, was still working for the United States.
Beirut
During the 1982 US Marines operation in Lebanon, Haney claims to have been deployed with other Delta Force members to find and kill several local militia member snipers who were attacking the Marine forces.
Grenada
In 1983, the US invaded Grenada in Operation Urgent Fury. Haney and other Delta operators were assigned to raid a prison thought to hold political prisoners. Their helicopters came under heavy enemy fire, and they determined that the prison was empty. The raid was called off.
Security consultant
After leaving the US Army, Haney was employed as a freelance security consultant and trainer. He worked within the US and abroad as a bodyguard, trainer for military and police forces, and private kidnap rescuer.
Publications
Haney wrote the book Inside Delta Force in 2002 [1]. It is the most commonly referenced book by a Delta Force insider, explaining the history and operations of the unit, but apparently caused some strife with active Delta Force soldiers, some of whom seem to have believed he had betrayed the unit's secrets. [citation needed] The book has also been published in German, Japanese, Portuguese, and French, and was the inspiration for the 2006 television series The Unit, produced by CBS [2].
Haney was the host of a television series entitled "Spymaster USA," which aired on The Learning Channel in 2004. [3]
Haney also edited the book Beyond Shock and Awe: Warfare in the 21st Century (2006) (with Brian M. Thomsen) ISBN 0-425-20798-6.
Opinion of the Iraq War
Recently, Haney was interviewed by David Kronke, for the Los Angeles Daily News in which he was outwardly critical of the planning and implementation for Operation Iraqi Freedom, and of alleged use of torture by the U.S. Military.[4] Haney never actively served in any phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom or even Desert Storm since he was Retired from the U.S. Army during these Conflicts.
Criticism
Haney has been declared "Persona Non Grata" within the U.S. Military community, based on his conduct after leaving his active-duty status to promote his book and TV series. The money he has made has been at the price of National Security. [citation needed] Logan Fitch, Haney's former Delta squadron commander, said Haney's comments and conduct since he left the military more than a decade ago have earned him "persona non grata" status. He is banned from Delta facilities, reunions and commemorative events. Article to Reference
"I don't know of any [ex-Delta troops] who are sympathetic to Haney," said Fitch, who joined Delta shortly after Burruss did.
"I have no problem with him capitalizing on his experience, but he should be factual. I view him as a crass opportunist interested in personal gain," he said.
Dick Davis spent 15 years in Delta Force, succeeding Wick as the unit's command sergeant major in 1994. Davis said Haney has been trying to profit from his Delta experience since the mid-1990s, when he tried to claim copyright to the organization's emblem, a sword overlaid by a triangle-shaped thunderbolt. (Haney displays this emblem on his personal website)
Other individuals were responsible for the logo design, Davis said, and Haney's claim was rejected.
Haney's book revealed too much about the organization's inner workings, potentially putting people and programs at risk, he said.
"I don't have a lot time for Eric Haney," Davis said. "What he has done is break faith with the troops."
Several former teammates have challenged his version of events in Inside Delta Force.[1]
See also
External links
References
- ^ Lardner, Richard (2006). "Delta Force Vets Dismiss Claims Of 'The Unit' Writer". Jane's International Defense Review. The Tampa Tribune. Retrieved 2006-04-11.