The Long Road Home

As newly arrived American troops are settling in for their first wartime deployment to Sadr City, Baghdad, a platoon led by Lt. Shane Aguero is ambushed during a routine sanitation support mission to the city slums.

Still under fire, Lt. Shane Aguero and his platoon take refuge in an Iraqi house and set up defensive positions. At Camp War Eagle, Volesky and Denomy launch a rescue mission to retake the city and free their men before it’s too late. Meanwhile, rumors of an attack in Sadr City start circulating at Fort Hood, and a tragedy strikes that threatens to tear the platoon apart.

Denomy leads the first rescue for the platoon under heavy fire. Volesky launches the second convoy. Aguero and his men struggle to hold their position in the Iraqi house. Meanwhile, at Fort Hood, Gina Denomy faces challenges of her own as a new leader of the Family Readiness Group and the mother of a newborn child.

Staff Sgt. Miltenberger is overcome by a premonition that he will die in Iraq. He’s already said his goodbyes to his wife and family. Prepared for whatever lies ahead, he sits down for what he believes is his last meal. As night falls, Miltenberger and his men get stranded under increasingly dangerous conditions. News reaches stateside, and LeAnn and Gina try to reassure families.

Interpreter Jassim al-Lani’s troubled past is revealed and his allegiances are tested. Tensions rise in the alley house as the insurgents change tactics and force Aguero to make a decision that will scar his platoon forever. Back at Fort Hood, LeAnn and Gina learn about mounting casualties and prepare for the worst.

Tomas Young learns about the realities of war when Miltenberger’s troop comes under fire. Casualties mount in the rear of the LMTV, as Denomy tries yet again to rescue the stranded platoon. Aguero’s men reckon with the destruction. For Young, this moment marks the beginning of a lifelong struggle, with far-reaching consequences, through which he’ll touch countless lives.

With Aguero out of play and supply of ammunition fast diminishing, Bourquin struggles to signal helicopters in a desperate last-ditch effort to get located, culminating in a climactic final battle. At Fort Hood, the families are engaged in their own challenges as more news trickles in from Sadr City.

The climactic final chapter of the eight-part global scripted event series The Long Road Home. The rescuers finally punch through to the stranded platoon, but the battle hasn’t finished taking its toll, both in Sadr City and at Fort Hood. Eight hours and seven minutes after the first shots were fired, the men of the 1st Cavalry Division are reunited, and must cope with the new realities of the war. The soldiers and families honor their fallen.

Based on a true story, this dramatic miniseries relives the heroic fight for survival during the Iraq War, when the 1st Cavalry Division from Fort Hood was ferociously ambushed in Sadr City, Baghdad. And on the home front back in Texas, families await news, fearing the worst. Starring Michael Kelly, Jason Ritter, Kate Bosworth.

It was supposed to be a peacekeeping mission. But on April 4th, 2004, the Army’s 1st Cavalry Division was ambushed while on patrol in Sadr City, Iraq. Go behind the scenes and on the set of National Geographic’s new scripted series, The Long Road Home, based on the best-selling book by Martha Raddatz. Hear from the real soldiers and families and see how the events of Black Sunday are being brought to life.

Explore the real-life stories of the men and women who inspired The Long Road Home as they face the challenges of putting their lives back together. With footage shot by Martha Raddatz, author of the book on which the series is based, we follow the soldiers and their families as they process the events of Black Sunday, reconnect their lives and honor those who did not make it home.