Louis J. Langlais: The Master Chief Who Led with Calm, Extortion 17
A Special Warfare Operator Master Chief and Navy SEAL who served with SEAL Team 3 and the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, decorated four times with the Bronze Star for valor across a 25-year career. He gave his life on August 6, 2011, in the Extortion 17 helicopter crash in Wardak Province, Afghanistan, at the age of 44.
Service Record
- Branch
- USN
- Unit
- ST3, NSWDG
- Station Assigned
- Oceana, VA
- Hometown
- Santa Barbara, CA
- Family
- Survived by his wife, Anya, and their two sons.
- Fallen On
- August 6th, 2011
Born on October 5, 1966, in Quebec, Canada, Louis Langlais grew up in Santa Barbara, California, where boyhood weekends fishing off Goleta Pier and Stearns Wharf grew into a lifelong love of the sea. A graduate of Santa Barbara High School, he was remembered by those who knew him best as steady, fearless, and quietly adventurous, a man who scaled cliffs and jumped from aircraft with the same calm he carried into combat.
He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1986 and completed basic training at NTC San Diego, California. Drawn to the water, he began Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training at NAB Coronado in February 1989 and earned his Trident. Over a 25-year career he served with SEAL Team 3 and rose to become a troop leader in the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, among the nation's most elite operators.
Langlais was decorated many times over. His awards include four Bronze Star Medals with Combat "V" for valor, two Joint Service Commendation Medals (one with Combat "V"), three Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, three Combat Action Ribbons, the Presidential Unit Citation, and seven Good Conduct Medals, among many others. He saw action in Iraq and served repeated tours in Afghanistan.
On August 6, 2011, Master Chief Langlais was aboard the CH-47 Chinook helicopter, callsign Extortion 17, moving to reinforce a Quick Reaction Force sent to support U.S. Army Rangers engaged with the enemy in Wardak Province, Afghanistan. When insurgents struck the helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade, all 30 Americans aboard were lost, including 17 from the Naval Special Warfare community. It remains the greatest single-incident loss of life in Naval Special Warfare history.
At 44, Lou was among the most experienced operators lost that day. He is remembered as a devoted husband and father to his two sons, a loyal friend since childhood, and a man whose love of the ocean and adventure never left him. His calm under fire and his quiet courage left a mark on everyone who served beside him.
To learn more about Louis J. Langlais and other fallen heroes, please visit:
On behalf of myself and everyone at BoneFrog Coffee, I want to express our deepest condolences to the family of Louis J. Langlais who gave his life for our country. Words cannot capture the weight of this loss or the gratitude we feel for his courage and sacrifice. He was more than a warrior, he was a brother, a patriot, and a man whose dedication to protecting our freedom will forever inspire us. His sacrifice will never be forgotten, and his memory will live on in our hearts and in the values we strive to uphold. To his family, we share in your grief and stand with you, honoring his legacy with unwavering respect and gratitude.
Long Live The Brotherhood!!
Tim Cruickshank LCDR, USN (SEAL) Ret. and the BoneFrog Coffee Team