Command Sergeant Major Richard C. Lamb

CSM Richard C. Lamb

Ranger, Special Forces, Panama, Somalia, Haiti, Iraq, Horn of Africa
(1959-)

Bio

Born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1959, Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Richard C. Lamb began his military career at age 18 as a member of the Iowa National Guard. He entered active duty in 1978 with the 1st Ranger Battalion at Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia, and deployed for Operation EAGLE CLAW, the 1980 attempt to free American hostages held in Iran.

In 1984, he was assigned to the UN, Joint Security Area, Panmunjom, in South Korea. There, Lamb led a quick reaction force against North Korean forces, and was awarded the Silver Star. His Special Forces (SF) career began in 1986 with Company C, 3-7th SF Group (SFG). He served during Operation JUST CAUSE in Panama, conducting direct action missions, and facilitating surrenders of Panamanian Defense Forces.

In 1993, as a Task Force Ranger member, Lamb was seriously wounded during the Battle of Mogadishu, Somalia while attempting to rescue soldiers. Recovering from wounds, he was decorated with the Joint Service Commendation Medal with Valor. After recovery, Lamb served in Haiti, Bosnia, Iraq, and the Horn of Africa.

CSM Richard C. Lamb retired in 2003, and was inducted into the U.S. Special Operations Command Commando Hall of Honor, and received the Bull Simons Award recipient for lifetime achievement. His legacy of excellence in the Rangers and Special Forces endures.

PHOTOS

The Lamb family has a long tradition of Army service. In the 1950s, his father served in the Iowa National Guard’s 34th Infantry Division. CSM Lambs own career began in the Iowa National Guard 168th Military Police Company in 1977.
In 1978, Lamb volunteered for active duty service with the 1st Ranger Battalion, at Hunter Army Airfield, in Georgia.
Lambs graduation from the Ranger Indoctrination Program (RIP) as seen in this 1979 photo, from left to right, PFCs Elias Freitas, Robert Weeks, and then-PVT Lamb. The 1st Ranger Battalion used an unsubdued Shoulder Sleeve Insignia at the time.
With Company C, 1st Ranger Battalion, Lamb deployed in support of Operation EAGLE CLAW, the 1980 attempt to free American hostages held in Iran. Here Lamb is seen before deployment with a suppressed Military Armament Corporation (MAC) Model-10 submachine gun.
From 1981 to 1984, Lamb served as a Squad Leader with the 21st Infantry, 24th Infantry Division. During this tour he participated in the BRIGHT STAR series of exercises in Egypt. Camp Victory was near the Cairo West airfield.
In Korea, then-SSG Lamb began his tour of duty in 1984, and was handpicked for the UN Command Security Group, Joint Security Area, Panmunjom. In this photo, Lamb is on the south side of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) with a North Korean soldier on the north side. The white building is one of a series used for armistice talks, ongoing to this day since 1953.
In November 1984, a Soviet Defector ran across the MDL requesting asylum, and an intense forty-minute firefight followed. Lamb, left kneeling, led his squad reaction force against North Korean soldiers in the “sunken garden.” He later stated, “We closed to within ten or fifteen meters and forced them to raise their hands above their heads and surrender.”
The Joint Security Area, Panmunjom, Korea in 1984. The sunken garden, south of the Freedom House, was the location where then SSG Lamb and his squad helped stop the North Korean Army incursion during the “Soviet Defector Firefight.”
In 1999, fifteen years after the event, Lamb received the Silver Star for his actions during the “Soviet Defector Firefight.” Then-Brigadier General Leslie J. Fuller, Commanding General Special Operations Command-Europe, presented the medal during a ceremony held in Germany.
Then-SFC Richard C. Lamb, ODA 795, Company C, 3-7th SFG, prepares a fast rope from a UH-1H Huey helicopter in Panama during training before Operation JUST CAUSE. SFC Christopher R. Zets assists from inside.
By 1992, Lamb was with the 3rd Ranger Battalion, as a Platoon Sergeant, at Fort Benning in Georgia. With TF RANGER, during Operation GOTHIC SERPENT, he was seriously wounded in Mogadishu, Somalia while on a rescue mission. This photo was taken before the deployment to Somalia.
Recovered from his wound, Lamb served with 3rd SF Group at Fort Bragg in North Carolina for three years. In 1997, the FLINTLOCK exercise in Mali, with African soldiers from four nations, helped to validate the African Crisis Response Initiative (ACRI). This photo is from that exercise.
After attending the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy, Lamb was the Sergeant Major for Company C, 1st Battalion, 10th SF Group at Panzer Kaserne in Germany. In 2000, a change of command with then-Major David Roddenberry illustrated the unit capabilities and training.
Lamb was selected as the first CSM for Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, and later participated in Operation IRAQI FREEDOM in 2003, as seen in this photo. After retirement from active duty, he served with U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) as a civil servant working with allied partners in regional counter terrorism initiatives.
In 2015, CSM Ret. Lamb received the USSOCOM Arthur “Bull” Simons Award for lifetime achievement in special operations. It was presented by the then-USSOCOM Commanding GEN Joseph L. Votel. Lamb is also a member of the USSOCOM Commando Hall of Honor and the U.S. Army Ranger Hall of Fame.

VIDEOS

2015 USASOC Commando Hall of Honor Induction Ceremony, part 1
2015 USASOC Commando Hall of Honor Induction Ceremony, part 2