Hostage Rescue Team - Notable Operators

Notable Operators

• Danny Coulson — FBI HRT Founder and former commander. Later, Coulson was the deputy assistant director of the FBI. Prior to creating the HRT, Coulson served on one of the FBI SWAT teams, more specifically a sniper team, and he later commanded one of the most active SWAT teams in the FBI. As of July 2009, Danny Coulson is a successful security consultant, author, and guest speaker.
• Lon Horiuchi — Former FBI HRT operator and sniper who shot Vicky Weaver in the head while she was holding her infant daughter during the Ruby Ridge standoff. Horiuchi was later deployed during the Waco Siege. Later he was charged with manslaughter but the charges were dismissed.
• Christopher Whitcomb — Former FBI HRT operator and sniper. Whitcomb spent 15 years with the FBI and was involved with the Waco Siege, Los Angeles riots of 1992, and Ruby Ridge. As of February 2012, Whitcomb is an American author and appeared as an "expert" on the NBC game show Identity.
• James K. McAllister — The first of the HRT's two known casualties.
• Gregory J. Rahoi — The second casualty of the HRT. Rahoi was accidentally shot and fatally wounded at Fort A.P. Hill in Caroline County, Virginia, during a live-fire tactical training exercise designed to prepare him for his deployment to Iraq. Rahoi had been assigned to the HRT for six years during which he served three tours in Iraq. He worked as a firefighter, paramedic, police officer, and lawyer in Wisconsin prior to joining the FBI. He was posthumously awarded the FBI Medal of Valor for acts of heroism during his final Iraq tour, and his family was presented with the FBI Memorial Star.
• Thomas R. Norris — Original member of the HRT as an assault team leader. Former US Navy SEAL and a Medal of Honor recipient. Saved Lieutenant Colonel Iceal Hambleton in the infamous Bat-21 mission. Later lost one eye during a mission in Vietnam, known for being the first HRT member with one eye.