You guys can call it stupid if you like, but at least these guys were out trying to help people.
I'm glad they are trying to help, but they FUBARed it. End of story, like I said, now instead of one civilian stranded they have 1 civilian and 8 NG guys.
They jumped into the situation without thinking it through and made it worse.
And the ones who are saying they "ruined" these 7 tons....that is the most uneducated spout of garbage I've heard in a long....long long time. Our modern vehicles can handle WAY more than that. Give me a few minutes and I will post a video of a humvee COMPLETELY submerged and still driving. Not to mention it does NOT ruin those engines. Not one bit. Will it need some heavy maintenance? Yes. But they are not "ruined"
I think you are the one who is ignorant. Those diesels will likely need a complete overhaul, new valves, push rods, rockers, milled heads, sleeves, con rods, wrist pins, pistons, crank may be bent... the works. Have you ever seen what hydrolock does to an internal combustion engine? When you try to compress an incompressible liquid (Water) at a 20/1 ratio... it leads to lots of stuff breaking and bending.
IF they where lucky, then the water choked the intake and stalled it before water got in the cylinders and destroyed the engine, but I wouldn't count on it. Not to mention all the corrosion and accessories that don't like water either.
I'd like to see how many of you would have the BALLS to look at what you believe to be an impossible situation and even THINK of making the attempt seriously.... These guys did it.
I'm not questioning their "balls" I'm questioning their common sense. And FYI I was a whitewater river guide for 5 years, I am very well trained in fast water rescue, and have rescues many people stranded on a rock in the middle of, or floating un-contained through class 3 whitewater. I know how, and have done many fast water rescues, you could say I have both the balls and brains.
Like I said, why not just send a strong swimmer with a PFD to the guy to keep him together mentally and physically til a boat can get there?
At that point, you're already committed. 
Committed to keep going forward, into even deeper water?
Really why? Do NG trucks not have reverse anymore? At the point where water is just cresting the hood, you could still back out and probably have no more problems then a soggy air filter.
As for the HUMVEE video you talk about, I have seen it, or ones like it.
Those HUMVEEs have: snorkels, extended CC breather, extended diff breathers, extended fuel tank breather, dielectric greased electrical terminals, sealed starter, sealed alternator, sealed weatherstripping, and probably a whole lot more. In short they are purpose built for deep fording. A stock deuce is not, which is why those 2 are now bricks until they get rebuilt engines, diffs, interiors,starters, alternators.. etc. On the bright side the tranny will probably be OK with just a flush though.
Like I said I have the utmost respect for the military, as everyone should I believe. But that respect does not make them infallible. These guys did a massive SNAFU that is the fact. Do I hold it against them? Not at all, we've all had massive SNAFUs. It happens. I just posted it for a laugh, and nobody got hurt, so I think it's OK to have a little laugh at their expense.
