Where Are the Black Hawk Down Survivors Now? All About the U.S. Soldiers' Lives Decades Later — and What Somali Citizens Still Remember from the Deadly Battle

Though Black Hawk Down is a fictionalized account of the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, the real American soldiers and Somalis who survived the deadly crash have their own harrowing tales to tell. 

Netflix’s Surviving Black Hawk Down, released on Feb. 10, gave them the chance to do just that.  

“They chained me up,” said Chief Warrant Officer Michael Durant, who was taken prisoner by enemy forces after his helicopter was shot down. “There was an interrogator. I thought there’s no way out of here. Death is on its way.”  

On the day Durant was taken as a prisoner of war, Oct. 3, 1993, a U.S. task force was sent to Somalia’s capital city of Mogadishu to capture two top lieutenants of the Somali National Alliance (SNA) Leader Mohamed Farrah Aidid. The United Nations had blamed him for an ambush that killed around two dozen Pakistani soldiers earlier that year, per The New York Times.  

What was meant to be a quick capture-and-extraction operation turned into an intense 18-hour battle that would leave 18 American soldiers dead and 84 wounded, per The Washington Post. Somali leaders estimated that the battle killed 312 of their militiamen and citizens and injured 814 others.

Netflix's Surviving Black Hawk Down included testimonials from members of both sides of the conflict as well as locals who found themselves trapped in one of the deadliest battles in modern warfare. 

So, where are the Black Hawk Down survivors now? Here’s everything to know about the soldiers and citizens who survived the Battle of Mogadishu. 

What happened during the Battle of Mogadishu?

The 1993 Battle of Mogadishu — often referred to as the Black Hawk Down incident — was a deadly military engagement that took place in Somalia during a U.S. mission to capture Aidid's top lieutenants. What was intended to be a quick operation turned into a violent 18-hour battle when two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters were shot down by Somali soldiers. 

Surrounded and outnumbered, U.S. forces faced intense combat as they worked to rescue the downed crews. The conflict resulted in the deaths of 18 American soldiers and hundreds of Somali fighters and civilians, many of whom were caught in the crossfire. 

The battle was recounted in detail in Mark Bowden’s 1999 book Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War, which was later adapted into Ridley Scott’s 2001 film of the same name. Black Hawk Down featured an ensemble cast starring Josh Hartnett and Ewan McGregor and won two Academy Awards. 

Who was Mohamed Farrah Aidid?

Mohamed Farrah Aidid was a Somali military officer in the early 1990s. After he helped overthrow dictator Mohamed Siad Barre, Somalia broke out into a civil war with rival factions fighting for control. Aidid’s faction was the SNA. 

After the U.N. blamed him for attacking their peacekeeping forces, including the June 1993 ambush against Pakistani soldiers, they began to target Aidid more aggressively. The U.N. and the U.S. then worked together under the banner of trying to return the country to democracy.

One of their missions was the now infamous Black Hawk Down incident that started as an initiative to capture two of Aidid's lieutenants. When the troops made their way to downtown Mogadishu, where they had received intel that two lieutenants were meeting, two Black Hawk helicopters were shot down, which led to the almost a day-long battle of bloodshed between the Somali militia and the U.S. Army.

Aidid survived the Black Hawk Down incident and later died of a heart attack in 1996.

Who is Michael Durant? 

Michael Durant is an Army veteran who piloted one of the Black Hawk helicopters that was shot down by the Somali militia, per the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. He survived the attack and attempted to defend himself on the ground alongside Sergeant First Class Randall Shughart and Master Sergeant Gary Gordon.

But, as the battle intensified, those two soldiers were killed and Durant was taken into captivity. He spent 11 days as a prisoner of war before being released. 

After Aidid agreed to free him, Durant was turned over to American soldiers with a gunshot wound and broken leg, back and eye socket. He had received medical care while in captivity and was expected to make a full physical recovery, per the Los Angeles Times.

Ron Eldard portrayed Durant in Black Hawk Down. 

How many soldiers died during the Battle of Mogadishu?

Eighteen U.S. soldiers died during the Battle of Mogadishu. In Surviving Black Hawk Down, Delta Force combat veteran Tom Satterly discussed what was going through his mind during the deadly battle. 

“Go deep in the heart of the bad-guy territory, the heat hits you, you’re sweating, the sand sticks to everything, everybody’s against us,” he told filmmakers. “My attitude was, we’re the good guys. We’re America. Wouldn’t be doing it if it wasn’t right.” 

In addition to the deaths, 84 U.S. soldiers were injured.

How many Somalis died during the Battle of Mogadishu?

The casualties suffered by Somalis in the Black Hawk Down incident were far greater in numbers. At the time, leaders estimated that 312 militia and citizens had been killed. But Bowden reported in his book that the death toll was closer to over 500. In addition to the deaths, over 800 Somalis were wounded. 

Binti Ali Wardhere, who is also interviewed in Surviving Black Hawk Down, told BBC in February 2025 that she had her hand partially severed during the battle when a shell hit her house. Her husband, Mohamed Aden, and two of her sons, Abdulkadir Mohamed and Abdurahman Mohamed were killed. Four of her other children were injured, and one was permanently blinded. 

"It was the Americans who destroyed my house, killed my husband, my two sons, and my brother, and left my family in lasting misery," she said. "At the very least, they must admit what they have done and compensate us."

Cameraman Ahmed Mohamed Hassan, also called Ahmed Five, documented everything he could during the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, which allowed people outside of Somalia to see the destruction of the combat mission and increased criticism of American involvement in the Eastern African country.

Of Surviving Black Hawk Down, Ahmed told BBC, "This time, Somalis were given the opportunity to share their account of events. It is crucial that both sides of the story are always told."

Where are the Black Hawk Down survivors now?

While the newly elected President Bill Clinton ordered U.S. troops out of Somalia by 1994, civil war continued in the country for decades per Smithsonian Magazine.

Maj. Gen. William Garrison later took full responsibility for the incident in a letter penned to President Clinton, The New York Times reported, effectively ending his military career. He retired in 1996 to a farm in Hico, Texas, and, according to the Daily Beast, has never given an interview about the battle.

Many of the surviving U.S. soldiers continued to serve in the Army. Durant logged more flight hours before retiring in 2001 and becoming the CEO of an engineering service company specializing in aviation training. In 2022, he ran in the Alabama Senate race seeking the Republican nomination but lost, per ABC.

Some of the other veterans have taken different paths. Satterly runs a nonprofit organization that supports Special Operations warriors and their families, Brad Thomas is the lead guitarist and songwriter for a modern grunge band called Silence & Light and Larry Perino is an associate vice president at Navy Federal Credit Union.

However, all of the former soldiers interviewed in Surviving Black Hawk Down said they still struggle with the lasting impacts of the violence they experienced and participated in over 30 years ago.

"You gotta be able to separate it in your mind," said David Diemer, a former Army Ranger who now owns and operates a full-service security firm. "I don't know, maybe someday I'll go bats--- crazy. I have no idea. But you know, it was my job."

Former Somali militia members echoed similar sentiments. However, many noted to the filmmakers that for them, the loss felt much worse.

"For the Americans, October 3rd is a tragic day, but for us, this was a dark moment," said Yasin Dheere, a former member of the Aidid militia. "When I think about what happened, my head starts hurting. It left me with a grudge and painful memories."

The Mogadishu residents who witnessed the battle are also still dealing with the loss and aftermath to this day. 

"Dying is one thing, but my daughter being blind is what hurts my stomach," Wardhere, who goes by Binti Adan in the docuseries, said in Surviving Black Hawk Down. "It was just a battlefield to them. It was a home to me."