Operation Desert Storm
Operation Desert Storm took place between January 16 and February 24, 1991. The operation had four phases: 1) attacks against logistics infrastructure, and military communications systems and government electricity in Iraq; 2) attacks against the Iraq air force in Kuwait territory; 3) attacks targeting the Republican Guard Saddam Hussein, and the rest of enemy weapons; 4) conduct a ground invasion with a Coalition force to expel the invaders from Kuwait (Zarpelão, 2010).
During the first and the second phases, the coalition adopted a strategy used in the Second World War. It attacked Iraq’s infrastructure through use of superior air force power. The focus was the military communications systems and government electricity
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The Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, believed that maintaining fixed positions against the coalition forces would be a great strategy. The ground invasion by the coalition was a conventional offensive to confront the resistance from Iraqi troops, mainly along borders with Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Faced with imminent defeat, Saddam Hussein decided to burn approximately 640 Kuwait wells. The goal was to cause the most destruction possible and make the coalition mission more difficult. On 24 February, the Coalition Army infantry attack began with an invasion of soldiers backed by tanks (Zarpelão, 2010). The last phase of the ground offensive culminated with the beginning of the Battle of 73 Easting. The battle showed that even knowing the terrain, the weather, and the number of Iraqi forces, the coalition had equipment and technology superior to be successful in conventional …show more content…
The intensity of the air support and the technologic equipment gave superiority to the 2nd ACR throughout the battle. Due to the intense use of air attacks by the coalition forces throughout the first three phases of the Gulf War, the Iraq Republican Guard was not able to maneuver. They built bunkers to house the armored vehicle positions. Initially, Ghost and Iron Troops made first contact with the Iraqi security elements. Eagle Troop also deployed to an area next to the training location of the Iraq force. The main part of this battle lasted only took about 90 minutes. In the beginning, weather hampered the Coalition’s air support. Seemingly, the Iraqi forces did not believe that the coalition could come from the west because of the bad weather situation. Using thermal sights and GPS, the 2nd ACR used the surprise to defeat the enemy. Technology helped the coalition forces drive its vehicles through the desert and localize the enemy with precision. Consequently, independent of the weather conditions and the terrain, the 2nd ACR had the advantage not only because the surprise and use of technological equipment, but because of the threat from above the IRG felt once the air support became effective during the first phases. As a result, the 2nd ACR lost two M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicles and no tanks. On the other hand, the Iraqi forces lost 57 Tanks, 28 BMPs, 11 MTLBs, 45 trucks, and
Over 500,000 troops were in the Gulf at the beginning of Desert Storm.(Persian Gulf War Britannica) In 1990 USA made their way into Kuwait to defend them from Iraq.(Persian Gulf War Britannica) The Iraqis were very poor from the war they had just suffered and they needed money. (Persian Gulf War Britannica) So they decide to invade Kuwait for their oil supply so the Iraqis could sell oil to make money. (Persian Gulf War Britannica) What they didn’t know was the U.S. were buying the oil from Kuwait and the U.S. wanted Kuwait to have oil. (Persian Gulf War Britannica) So the U.S. defended Kuwait and attacked the Iraqis. (Persian Gulf War Britannica) They did this by sending over 100,000 troops
Operation Anaconda was an offensive operation conducted by Coalition Forces during the first invasion of Afghanistan. It was the last major operation to take place during the campaign (). While the operation was successful, there were many arduous battles that had to be fought in order to secure victory. One of these battles in particular stands out due to the sheer number of difficulties and setbacks that occurred during the engagement. This battle has become known as the Battle of Roberts Ridge. For the purpose of this Battle Analysis the Battle of Roberts Ridge will be analyzed with regards to the characteristics of an offense, in particular Surprise, Tempo, and Audacity.
(Rostker) Air Defense Artillery played an immensely significant role in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm with units from 11th Brigade Air Defense Artillery and the 32d Air Defense Command rapidly deploying into theater. There was no doubt of the effectiveness of the air defense units in Desert Storm and Desert Shield. The air defense units displayed sound defensive tactics and preparation for the campaigns. They demonstrated excellent capabilities providing coalition and ground forces the much-needed assistance to succeed during the war. No matter how much people have criticized Air Defense Artillery following Desert Shield and Desert Storm, the units played a critical role in the Army’s strategy to win the Gulf War.
1. What do you think of when you drive by that big B-52 at the museum? Being the history buff that I am, I think about Vietnam, where that old “Buff” was used the most. “Why should I care about Vietnam?” you ask yourself. Well, last time I checked there’s a history section in the PFE guide, so there might be a test later! The intent of this paper is to inform you about Operation Linebacker II. I’ll explain the events leading up to the operation, discuss the strategy, and finally I’ll sum up the results of a bombing campaign Sir Michael Knight characterized In the book Strategic Offensive Air Operation as “...may have played a role not unlike two B-29s over Japan 27 years earlier”. (Knight: 77) I’ll start by explaining why President Richard Nixon gave the order to begin this new bombing campaign.
Introduction Operation Anaconda was the first major joint combat operation against the war on terror that the US was committed to winning. This operation would test our military’s readiness for joint operations against a hardened and willing adversary. The primary mission was to kill/capture Taliban/Al Qaeda forces occupying towns and villages in the vicinity of Shahi Khot in order to gain control of the valley.1 The US needed the towns, villages, mountains, and more importantly, the intricate and hard to access caves cleared of enemy fighters. Units participating in the operation included elements of the 101st Airborne Division, 10th Mountain Division, Special Operations Forces (SOF), and Coalition forces from seven nations including Afghanistan.2 With so many different nations fighting along with our own branches of military, it would test our ability to conduct joint operations on multiple levels. History On September 11, 2001, Osama Bin Laden decided to “wake the sleeping giant.”
Army. Unfortunately fratricide was a reoccurring issue during this battle as well. Due to the lack of training and knowledge of aircraft identification, American AAA gunners and infantryman shot down several friendly planes in the heat of this battle, including several easily identifiable P-38 fighter planes. Those mistakes could have easily been avoided had the soldiers of that time been instructed of proper identification of both friendly and enemy targets. The primary focus of the battle of Kasserine was that of a technical aspect, and in no form tactical. Aside from poor aircraft identification, there was also minimal training in combining air support with maneuvering ground troops on the battle field. This supreme poverty of training in turn led to yet more fratricide and loss of friendly life. A positive lesson learned was that the most effective means of Air Defense during the battle was the use of mounting two and four .50-caliber M2 machine guns on half-tracks. One aspect that proved to be ineffective was the 37mm guns, which failed to stop or destroy the German tanks. Aware of this fact, the U.S. Army began the development of armor piercing shells and anti-tank guns. The U.S. Army was mindful of the shortcomings during the battle of Kasserine Pass and only weeks after refined and revamped its tactics and strategies in air support, amour fighting, and artillery. Due to weapon
In fact, Rob Hernandez explained that Desert Storm was a brief conflict. In the same manner, Operation Desert Storm was originally called “Desert Shield” when American Troops were originally migrating into Kuwait. Moreover, according to George Brown Tindall and David Emory Shi, authors of America: A Narrative History, this mission be...
The 2nd Brigade of 101st Airborne Division found out in the summer of 2004 that they had to prepare for the war in the Middle East more particularly for Iraq. With Colonel Todd Ebel in Command of the 2nd Division with a year to prepare over 3,400 men and woman he got right to work. Colonel Ebel started by choosing his staff and who he thought was fit to take charge and lead this ever more complicated war. It was a huge religious civil war taking place in Iraq at the time with the Sunnis at war against the Shi’ite and after the capture of Saddam insurgency started uprising immediately. This uprising along with the uprising of Muqtada al-Sadr a key leader that had lots of violent followers that soon grew into a form of a militia called Mahdi Army which became another huge problem for the U.S. because the line between a legitamite populist movement and a huge theocratic organized-crime and terror ring was a thin one. The 2nd Brigade Infantry Battalions consisted of 1-502nd (First Strike) and 2-502nd (Strike Force) and 2nd brigade as a whole is known as the “Black Hearts”. Ebel’s mission was to deny insurgent’s access to Baghdad through his AO and as intelligence increased to uproot and destroy insurgent safe havens, while also training the IA so they could ensure the stability of the region later on. Ebel chose Lt. Col. Kunk as commander of “First Strike” 1-502nd and Lt. Col. Haycock as commander of “Strike Force” 2-502nd. By Ebel’s personality evaluations of Kunk and Haycock he decided that Kunk would work in the area that involved him being more engaging where populist centers were and work with local officials and Haycock more in the fighting areas. Kunk was in command of 3 rifle companies, 1 weapons company, 1 logistics company...
... Kuwait to get to the southern part of Iraq. In this situation, Iraq was left cornered. Also the movement of some of Osama Bin Laden's beliefs had greatly affected the war. This brought forth many opposing forces against the United States.
In the month of April 2004, in the city of Habbaniyah, Iraq, a brutal and terrible act took place which ignited one of the bloodiest battles in the history of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Four Black Water security members were killed and publicly maimed. The resulting battle left a high casualty rate as well as hundreds of American service members being wounded. This is the story of the events that took place after the events in the city of Habbaniyah. On the 31st of March, 2004, a convoy was attacked.
On March 18, 2003, Coalition forces would launch the initial attacks on Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. A full invasion of the country followed, and Hussein was overthrown from power. While the end of Hussein’s oppressive reign was considered a victory for many of the Iraqi people, the Sunnis of the Ba’ath Party refused to accept his demise. Although the Sunnis were in the minority, the city of Fallujah would remain home to many of the Ba’ath Party supporters. On March 31, 2004, almost a year to date from the end of Hussein’s reign, four American Blackwater contactors working in Fallujah were attacked, brutally beaten, burned and dismembered by a group of Iraqi insurgents. Two of the bodies were hung from a bridge for all of the citizens of Fallujah to see, and a mob style celebration took place in the city. The highly publicized incident would be the igniter for the First Battle of Fallujah, known as Operation Vigilant Resolve. On May 1, 2004, the battle would end with the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the city and control being turned over to the newly formed Fallujah Brigade. The mission as a whole was a failure, and the shortcomings of Operation Vigilant Resolve were ultimately a demonstration of the underestimation of the power, size, efficiency, organization and control that the Insurgent Forces had in Iraq as well as the lack of a consistent strategic plan from the American forces.
The first battle in Fallujah during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) is known as Operation Vigilant Resolve. This battle is regarded as one of the biggest single defeats that the United States Military has suffered throughout all its campaigns during OIF. The United States and international media outlets exploited this defeat, which in turn, bolstered Al Qaeda recruiting in Fallujah. This offensive failure and retreat was backed by a huge public outcry for troop withdrawal and successful exploitation of recruiting propaganda by the insurgents.
Armed with numerous studies, and intensive public hearings, Congress mandated far-reaching changes in DOD organization and responsibilities in the Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986. This landmark legislation significantly expanded the authority and responsibility of the chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. Included in this expanded authority and responsibility was the requirement for the chairman to develop a doctrine for the joint employment of armed forces. As operations Urgent Fury, Just Cause, and Desert Storm have vividly demonstrated, the realities of armed conflict in today's world make the integration of individual service capabilities a matter of success or failure, life or death. Furthermore, the operation Desert One demonstrated the need for a strengthened Joint Warfare Doctrine and the consequent change in Joint Warfare Employment. It is plain to see the benefits of having the greatest navy integrated with the world's greatest army and air force. However, even in the wake of a relatively successful joint operation in the Middle East (Desert Storm), certain weaknesses are evident in the current joint employment tactics and/or capabilities. By analyzing past operations such as Urgent Fury and Desert Storm, we are able to see sufficient evidence that the Joint Warfare Concept can be disastrous in one instance and virtually flawless in another.
a comprehensive research service. Retrieved May 2, 2004, from Terrorist Attack by Al Qaeda: http://www.fas.org/irp/crs/033104.pdf. Gunaratna, R. (2005, September). Retrieved September 2005, from http://strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/parameters/articles/05spring/henzel.pdf. Gunaratna, R. (n.d.).
According to the Iraqis, the conflict started on the 4th of September when Iranian troops shelled Iraqi towns and villages along the middle border region that separated the two countries. According to Iran and most observers, on the 22nd of September, Iraq launched a full scale invasion of Iran along three fronts; the central, northern and southern border regions (Swearingen, 1988). In the preceding year, deteriorating conditions between the countries lead to numerous small border violations with Iran claimed from March 1979 to September 1980, 363 airspace violations and 434 attacks by Iraqi artillery, infantry and armored forces whilst Iraq claimed 544 similar violations during this time. At outbreak, Iran held the lead in terms of people fit for military service (6.2 million against 2.03 million) but sorely lacked in terms of operational military equipment such as tanks (1,040 to 4,000), armoured fighting vehicles (750 to 3,000), and combat aircraft (70 to 632) (Segal, 1988, pp. 950-951).