BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (Courtesy of CJSOTF-A Public Affairs,
Jan. 29, 2008)  – Hundreds of U.S. Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines,
and Coalition partners lined Bagram Airfield’s main roadway and tarmac
Jan. 27, to pay their last respects to a fallen comrade.





U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Robert James Miller, of Company A, 3rd Battalion,
3rd Special Force Group (Airborne), was killed Jan. 25, by Taliban
fighters while protecting his Operational Detachment Alpha teammates
during combat operations near the village of Barikowt, Nari District,
Konar Province, Afghanistan.





Miller and his team were supporting an Afghan Border Police and
Coalition Forces security patrol in the Chenar Khar Valley near the
Pakistan border when they were attacked.





A tactical vehicle carried Staff Sgt. Miller’s flag-draped casket to the
waiting U.S. Air Force C-17 cargo aircraft.  As the vehicle passed,
service members stood at attention and rendered a final salute to their
fallen comrade; hundreds more soldiers lined the tarmac.  Soldiers from
Special Operations Task Force 33 formed a cordon leading to the ramp as
his brothers in arms serving as pallbearers escorted Staff Sgt. Miller’s
remains into the aircraft’s empty cargo area.

U.S. Army Brigadier Gen. Joseph Votel, Deputy Commanding General for
Operations, Joint Task Force 82; U.S. Army Col. Chris Haas, Commander,
Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force – Afghanistan and
Commander, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne); and Lt. Col. Samuel
Ashley, Commander, Special Operations Task Force 33, accompanied the
escorts onto the aircraft to honor a fellow soldier who paid the
ultimate sacrifice for the freedom of his country.





Miller was best remembered as a man who always had a smile and a ‘can
do’ attitude.  According to his teammates, he was always the first to
volunteer for any task.





"Robby was the type of soldier that saw the hardships before him and
stepped up to the challenge,” Lt. Col. Ashley eulogized during a
memorial ceremony, Jan. 28, at Bagram Airfield. "He understood the
hazards of combat and the risks of his service to our nation.  He
willingly bore the burden of the Soldier.  He was the epitome of the SF
soldier.  He was a warrior among warriors.”





U.S. Army Capt. John Bishop, of Special Operations Task Force 33, and
Miller’s former detachment commander also spoke at the ceremony. "He was
always quick to volunteer and never thought it should be any other
way.  On numerous occasions when the Detachment was faced with a
difficult task, Robby would just stand up and say, ‘I got this one, I’ll
do it, send me.’”





Jan. 25, Miller found himself willingly leading a team of Afghan
National Security Forces and Coalition soldiers during a combat
reconnaissance patrol in Konar Province, near the Pakistan border.  
Insurgents hiding in a structure attacked Miller’s team.  A fellow
teammate called for close-air support to drop ordnance on the insurgent
position, disrupting their attack.  When the combined patrol moved
toward the structure to check for any remaining enemy threats,
insurgents again fired using heavy weapons.





Miller’s team captain was seriously wounded within the first minutes of
the attack. While his commander was moved to safety, Miller returned
fire. At great personal risk to himself, Miller remained at the front of
the patrol and continued to lay down suppressive fire on multiple
insurgent positions, allowing his wounded commander to be pulled out of
the line of fire, ultimately saving his life.  Miller’s personal courage
under intense enemy fire enabled the entire patrol to gain cover and
return fire.  Even while injured by direct enemy small arms and machine
gun fire, Miller continued to employ his M249 Squad Automatic Weapon and
grenades to suppress enemy fire and protect his teammates.





Staff Sgt. Miller enlisted as a Special Forces trainee Aug. 14, 2003.  
He graduated from Infantry Basic Training and Airborne School at Ft.
Benning, Ga., Jan. 6. Miller graduated from the Special Forces
Qualification Course Sep. 26, 2004, and the Special Forces Weapons
Sergeant Course Mar. 4, 2005. Miller received his coveted Special Forces
Tab and was promoted to Sergeant after graduating from the Special
Operations French Language Training Course, Sep. 30, 2005.  That same
day he was assigned to Company A, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Special Force Group
(Airborne), Ft. Bragg, N.C.





He deployed to Afghanistan to support Operation Enduring Freedom from
Aug. 2006 to March 2007.  During this deployment, Miller received two
Army Commendation Medals for Valor for his courage under fire.





Miller returned to Afghanistan for his second tour in Oct. 2007, where he served as a Weapons Sergeant for his team.





Lt. Col. Ashley completed the memorial by stating, "The motto of our
Regiment is ‘Free the Oppressed.’  Special Forces soldiers have long
lived by this creed and today, we all carry this torch.  Robby
sacrificed his life bringing freedom to the oppressed people of
Afghanistan.  He placed his life on the line so that others would have a
chance to experience freedom.”





Miller is survived by his parents and seven brothers and sisters.