The Missions During the Surge in Iraq
Many units across the military forces conducted different types of missions during the surge in Iraq. Alpha Company 3rd Battalion 8th Cavalry Regiment had the distinct pleasure of conducting operations via air, land, and sea. The diversity of our Army depends heavily on the tenacity of our leaders and Soldiers. Here are some of the most memorable missions I conducted as the Platoon Sergeant for white platoon (2nd platoon) in Alpha Company.
Air Insertion in the Enemies Territory
The battalion’s most dangerous area of responsibility was split between Alpha Company and Bravo Company. This was on the border where the enemy would flee from Baquba, Iraq to the territory where coalition forces hadn’t been in …show more content…
Alpha company had been training on battle tested zodiac boats when we were not in rotation for patrols and on quick reaction force (QRF). No one in the company really wanted to actually conduct the mission because our company as a whole have had a lot of wounded in action (WIA) in the past two months. One day after patrol, the commander had a huddle with the platoon leaders and platoon sergeants. He revealed then who was going to conduct the last operation by sea. Our platoon was tagged with the task. The past two operations by sea had been overall successful, however, each operation sustained a few WIA’s. I myself was nervous to conduct the mission because it was one way in and one way out going into the heart of the ‘hornets’ nest’ where we had been before by air and land. The mission was a snatch and grab mission with an extraction by vehicles. The convoy was supposed to push down the roads with route clearance while we came by sea which was considered coming in the back door. They wouldn’t expect it at all. The night of the mission we hit the point of embarkation and unloaded the boats. A squad leader twisted his ankle and he was my point man. I thought that was a sign that the worse has yet to come. I didn’t take him on the mission and I assumed point. Once the mission kicked off, there was no light from the moon, the air was cool and crisp and it was at 0200 hundred hours in the morning. For some reason navigating the platoon thru the Tigris river was the most intense and relaxing moments I’ve had in my lifetime. I had a moment of clarity and peace. We reached the point of debarkation without being noticed by the enemy. The convoy moving slowly on the road took longer due to the amount of IEDs on the route to the middle of the city. The stealth of using the water to infiltrate the enemy was our biggest advantage. We snatched the target we were looking for
Many units across the military forces conducted different types of missions during the surge in Iraq. Alpha Company 3rd Battalion 8th Cavalry Regiment had the distinct pleasure of conducting operations via air, land, and sea. The diversity of our Army depends heavily on the tenacity of our leaders and Soldiers. Here are some of the most memorable missions I conducted as the Platoon Sergeant for white platoon (2nd platoon) in Alpha Company.
Air Insertion in the Enemies Territory
The battalion’s most dangerous area of responsibility was split between Alpha Company and Bravo Company. This was on the border where the enemy would flee from Baquba, Iraq to the territory where coalition forces hadn’t been in …show more content…
Alpha company had been training on battle tested zodiac boats when we were not in rotation for patrols and on quick reaction force (QRF). No one in the company really wanted to actually conduct the mission because our company as a whole have had a lot of wounded in action (WIA) in the past two months. One day after patrol, the commander had a huddle with the platoon leaders and platoon sergeants. He revealed then who was going to conduct the last operation by sea. Our platoon was tagged with the task. The past two operations by sea had been overall successful, however, each operation sustained a few WIA’s. I myself was nervous to conduct the mission because it was one way in and one way out going into the heart of the ‘hornets’ nest’ where we had been before by air and land. The mission was a snatch and grab mission with an extraction by vehicles. The convoy was supposed to push down the roads with route clearance while we came by sea which was considered coming in the back door. They wouldn’t expect it at all. The night of the mission we hit the point of embarkation and unloaded the boats. A squad leader twisted his ankle and he was my point man. I thought that was a sign that the worse has yet to come. I didn’t take him on the mission and I assumed point. Once the mission kicked off, there was no light from the moon, the air was cool and crisp and it was at 0200 hundred hours in the morning. For some reason navigating the platoon thru the Tigris river was the most intense and relaxing moments I’ve had in my lifetime. I had a moment of clarity and peace. We reached the point of debarkation without being noticed by the enemy. The convoy moving slowly on the road took longer due to the amount of IEDs on the route to the middle of the city. The stealth of using the water to infiltrate the enemy was our biggest advantage. We snatched the target we were looking for