Harry Schmidt
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Harry Schmidt is a Major in the Illinois National Guard and was at one time an instructor at the Navy's elite TOPGUN fighter pilot school. On April 17, 2002 over Afghanistan, while flying an F-16, Schmidt mistook Canadian anti-tank and machine-gun exercises as enemy fire and dropped a 500-pound laser-guided bomb on the 3rd Battalion of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, wounding eight and killing four: Sgt. Marc Leger, Cpl. Ainsworth Dyer, Pvt. Richard Green and Pvt. Nathan Smith. On July 6, 2004, Schmidt was found guilty of dereliction of duty and is no longer allowed to fly in Air Force aircraft.
Schmidt and his air-partner Major William Umbach were returning from a 10-hour patrol, at more than 15,000 feet, when they spotted surface-to-air fire. Thinking Umbach was under attack, Schmidt asked flight control permission to fire his 20 mm cannons, to which flight control replied "hold fire." Four seconds later, Schmidt said he was "rolling in, in self defense." He dropped a laser-guided bomb 35 seconds later.
On September 11, 2002, Schmidt and Umbach were officially charged with 4 counts of negligent manslaughter, 8 counts of aggravated assault, and 1 count of dereliction of duty, but Schmidt's charges were later reduced (on June 30, 2003) to a court-martial for dereliction of duty. Umbach's were later dismissed.
According to the defense lawyers of the two pilots, Schmidt and Umbach were told by their superiors to use "go pills" (amphetamines) on their missions, and blamed the incident on the drugs. Schmidt's defense also blamed the fog of war.
After a closed, non-judicial hearing held at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, Schmidt was found guilty on July 6, 2004 of dereliction of duty and was docked nearly $5,700 in pay. The letter of reprimand, written by Lt. Gen. Bruce Carlson, 8th Air Force Commander, said Schmidt had "flagrantly disregarded a direct order", "exercised a total lack of basic flight discipline", and "blatantly ignored the applicable rules of engagement."
On July 8, 2004, Schmidt's lawyer Charles Gittins announced plans to appeal the ruling and to file a lawsuit against the Air Force over the public release of documents in the case.