March 2, 2002. Soldiers from the 10th and the 101st Infantry Divisions land in the rugged Shah-i-Kot Valley. they are protected by Apaches from the 3rd Battalion 101st Aviation Brigade. By days end, five of seven Apaches supporting the infantry units are rendered inoperable from small arms fire, AKs and RPGs. Having traded range for firepower, and trained for stand-off attack, the piolts of the 3rd BN were forced to adapt to running fire in the heart of battle. Their very lives and the lives of hundreds of soldiers on the ground depended on it.