Col. Allison Black, U.S. Air Force, Afghanistan, 'The Angel of Death'

Allison Black surprised her family by deciding to enlist in the U.S. Air Force after high school. She did it to be part of a mission bigger than herself. After basic training, Black spent the next several years as a Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape - or SERE - instructor, teaching service members what to do if shot down, stuck behind enemy lines, or captured. 

After several years of that she became an officer in Air Force special operations and served as a navigator aboard an AC-130H gunship. Shortly after 9/11, she and her crew were deployed t...