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Call Me SPEARHEAD The Official Publication of the Association of 3d Armored Division Veterans January 15, 2001 Volume 01, Issue 1
The following
account was written by Don Goodwin, a Desert Storm veteran of the 4-32 Armor
Scout Platoon. It is published here
with his permission: The night before the cease-fire the HHC Scouts were set up on a
ridgeline for a screen. The
Company’s tanks, I think were
refueling. I can remember the
company on our right was in a light firefight. Every one’s adrenalin was
pumping at full blast along with fear, even though no one would have admitted
that. I believe it was around 7 p.m. but looked a lot darker I guess due to the
oil fires. The LT’s track was off to our right and the rest of the platoon was
to our left. I was constantly scanning with the thermal on the Bradley [HQ26].
I was over scanning my area, and was glad that I did so. To the right of the
LT’s track I started making out a vehicle coming around the berm. No the LT.
didn’t see the tank like several stories reported. We had to tell him on the
radio that the tank was about 250 meters to his right rear and he still
couldn’t see it. I verified the target and asked SSG Stephens twice if it was
okay to fire. I yelled, “on the way”, and the first TOW was off and too
short or the wires hung, it grounded before the tank. By then the Iraq’s knew
something was up and those that were outside the tank started jumping off. I
yelled,” On the way” again with number two TOW and that hit the tank just
below the turret on the road wheels. I started to move the turret around to
reload and I could feel the vehicle getting hit hard. Frank Bradish said we had
been taking fire from the rear but I didn’t believe it. I thought we had taken
a hit from the T72. I didn’t realize that rounds or shrapnel had taken out SSG
Stephens until I looked over and saw him slumped over in his seat. The light
inside the turret showed that he had been hit in the back of the head. I felt a
sharp pain in my leg and foot but didn’t think anything of it at the moment.
Frank said Adrian was hurt bad. I tried to move the turret but the controls were
gone, I couldn’t even hand crank it around. I tried to yell at the driver John
McClure but shrapnel had cut through my radio cords. Just then a searing pain
shot across my chest and I said to myself, “Sonofabitch, I’ve been shot.”
I had been wearing a flak jacket and a tankers flak vest, the round or
shrapnel had gone just below my right arm and through the armhole. It punctured
my right lung, broke a few ribs and left me gasping for breath. Thermite, smoke,
and gunpowder filled the air. At that time the only thing I thought to do was to
pop the hatch and climb out to get the drivers attention and see what had
happened in the back of the track. I wanted to get Adrian, Frank and Stephens
out. We had 10 TOW missiles, C4, grenades and 25mm rounds in the back. As I
pulled myself up to the top and over the side I didn’t realize the position of
the turret. I thought I would be able to touch the side with my feet. Nope, it
didn’t work out that way. The turret was turned so that I just feel from the
hatch to the ground. I tried to get up but kept stumbling and finally feel to
the ground, out of breath. Some how the driver, John McClure got out and so did
Frank Bradish, one of the loaders. John came over to me to find out if I was
okay. I laid on my right side, remembering that blood fills the lungs and you
can drown. John left and went after Frank Bradish. He later came back and told
me that he chased Frank down. He said Frank was running around and he couldn’t
stop him so he gave Frank the PRC77. The only thing was, the radio had a hole in
it from shrapnel, and it seemed to calm Frank down for a while. Flares were
going off, I saw a large explosion and silhouettes of people running everywhere.
I could hear Iraq’s and Americans yelling. John came back and said that he and
Frank had looked after Adrian but couldn’t get SSG Stephens out. Frank said he
tried to get anyone on the radio but couldn’t. It is kind of hard to talk to
some one when the radio had shrapnel in it.
Help
arrived and we were all taken back to a safer area. I was put into a M577 medic
track and Adrian was put in along side of me. He kept a grip on my arm, I kept
telling him to hang on. They pulled Adrian out of the track and I told them to
take care of him, that is the last time I saw him.
If you or anyone has the phone number or address of
[the families of] Adrian Stokes or Chris Stephens, let me know. I
need to tell Adrian’s mom and dad how great he was and SSG Stephens wife how
he helped influence my life. It has been to long for me to talk about all of
this. I relive this all the time and even more so in February. I am no longer in
the Army. I cannot run due to the shrapnel in my foot or do sit-ups or pushups
from my chest. Do I ever regret all of it? No, I joined to do a job and I did my
very best, along with my track mates. It is great that they have a 3d
AD memorial to honor the fallen. I just hope that no one forgets why we did
this. Don Goodwin 4-32 Armor, Scout Platoon, Desert Storm SCOUTS OUT! Editorial note:
it was later determined that HQ26 was hit from the rear by friendly 25mm
fire from a unit or vehicle unknown. SSG
Stephens was killed immediately, and PFC Adrian Stokes died a short while later
while being evacuated. For more on
the official investigation and battle damage assessment of the damaged vehicle,
see the following URL on the DoD GulfLink website:
http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/declassimages/army/19980729/980715_sep96_sagwi1_0001.html Editorial Section The following article
was submitted by SFC Charles Brainard Recently, the Department of the Army admitted that retention of Captains and Senior NCOs has become an issue. It seems that many of the officers and NCOs from the Desert Storm/Somalia era are calling it quits rather than filling out the 20 years. What could be going on? According to DA, it is the economy. As an insider to the current culture in the Army, I do not buy this explanation. Many of these men and women are not satisfied that the Army currently trains for war. While this may seem a small matter to some, a combat veteran usually thinks in those terms. All training events are filtered for what I call the 'reality check'. Will this really make me and my soldiers better prepared to perform our jobs in battle? Often, we are forced to postpone or cancel true battle focused events like ranges and squad lanes to provide 'rent a crowds' for parades or cultural events. Also, garrison focused training themes appear to have priority. We also have an integrity issue surfacing in the Army. Many believe that the pronouncements of the Pentagon are bold faced lies. The anthrax shots are an example of this. My generation of soldiers grew up with stories like Agent Orange, etc. We tend to be wary of vaccinations and chemicals that civilian experts call dangerous, but the military insists on using. It only takes one incident and it calls into question every thing in the future. The fact of the matter is that personal beliefs will always outweigh pronouncements from afar. Another issue is mission. This may be the most contentious of the issues. It is difficult to see where many of the current missions performed by the Army are defending the Constitution. Some simply cannot support them and won't. The last big issue driving the retention issues is the area of misuse and misallocation of personnel. Many NCOs and young officers find themselves moving from job to job and unit to unit far too often. There is a common understanding that personal contacts are the real key to assignments and duty postings. Some just won't fight the system anymore, so they call it in and go to Fort Home. It isn't the economy. Not directly. What the current economy does is allow soldiers options they might not have had in other eras. When confronted with situations that require putting aside their convictions based on experience and beliefs, we see a growing number of soldiers choosing to do what they believe to be the right thing rather than what the Army wants them to do. Personally, I believe that makes for a stronger Army! Charles Brainard Director A3ADV Editors
Note - SFC Brainard is a veteran of the US Army who is preparing to end his
military career after serving for about 15 years. The content of his article are
his personal beliefs as to why he is willing to do that and lose his retirement.
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The first version of the M-1 was the M1/IPM1. It was armed with a 105mm M68A Rifled Cannon, a .50 Cal M2 Machine Gun and two 7.62 M240 Machineguns. It weighed 60 tons, was capable of a top speed of 45 MPH and had a cruising range of 275 miles. It was powered, as are the later versions by an AGT-1500 turbine engine that produces 1500HP.
By 1985, evaluations of field service had prompted the first modification requests and the M-1A1 was born. The first M-1A1’s were delivered to units in August of 1985. The M1A1 was equipped with a 120mm M256 Smooth Bore Cannon, the weight had increased to 63 tons. The top speed was reduced to 42 MPH. It also was equipped with an NBC System (Nuclear, Biological, Chemical) to help the crew survive such an attack.
In August of 1990, the day came for the M-1 to prove its worth. As the Iraqi Army invaded Kuwait, the US Army began to move its units into Kuwait. The Abrams was untested in battle and its critics predicted its failure. They said that the sand would cause the tank to fail. They said that its extensive turret electronics could not survive real battlefield conditions without extended maintenance, and that they would fail. Although these turned out to not be true, the biggest weakness was revealed in deployment. A C-5, which is the largest transport plane we have, could only carry one M-1 at a time. So the bulk of the tanks had to be shipped to Saudi Arabia by ship. The Iraqi Army had about 500 - T72’s, many of which had the same features of the M-1. They also had 1,600 – T62’s and about 700 - T54 tanks. Against these 2,800 Iraqi tanks the US sent 1,908 versions of the M-1. 50% of the Iraqi tanks were destroyed by air power before the ground war began. Many of the remainder were destroyed by the Allied forces when the ground war began. 18 M1 tanks were taken out of service due to battle damage. Nine were permanent losses, nine were repairable, mostly from mines. Not a single Abrams crewman was lost in the conflict. US Commanders maintained a 90% operational readiness for their Abrams tanks.
In 1996, the M1A2 was born. The M1A2 contains many improvements in its command and control capabilities. It has an upgraded computer core, an upgraded InfraRed sighting system as well as an independent Commanders Independent Thermal Viewer. The M1A2 now weighs over 69 tons, it can still maintain a top speed of 42 MPH but now the cruising range is reduced to 265 miles. The M1A2 is the finest tank in the world. The major problem is getting it to the battlefield. That is why the Army is currently in the process of switching its rapid deployment units to lighter IAV vehicles. The IAV will have firepower close to the M1 but in order to get its weight under 20 tons, the IAV will have to sacrifice most of its armor protection. By doing so, the IAV will be able to be deployed by using C-130’s. After the fact that the Gulf war produced no casualties among M1 crews, its understandable they are reluctant to give up the protection of the M1 for the rapid deployment abilities of the IAV. The role of the IAV is much like the role that the 3d AD played in the Cold War. To hold the enemy in check until heavier units could arrive from the United States. During the recent conflict in Yugoslavia, it was determined it would have taken 6 months for Engineer Battalions to strengthen bridges in order for M1’s to be able to get from Germany to Kosovo. The job of the IAV will be to get there ahead of the heavy forces to strengthen our rapid deployment units such as the 82d and 101st Airborne Divisions. If Iraq had decided to continue on into Saudi Arabia in 1990, there would have been little the men from the 82d could have done to stop them without armor to stop the Iraqi tanks. The Army still plans to maintain heavy armor battalions using the M1A2 for situations where heavy armored units are still required.
Written By
Steven Depuy
Editor
Our First Reunion
We polled the membership as to reunion plans for our first reunion. 80% of the people desired to come to a reunion this summer in Pennsylvania while there was a core group who also wanted to attend the 3rd Armored Division Association reunion in Peoria in September. We are happy to announce that both options are going to be available to people. You will find an application for our reunion on the last two pages of this newsletter. We also have enclosed an application for the Peoria reunion in the newsletter package. I have been informed that we are also welcome to attend their reunion. Specific details of both reunions will be available at the reunions section of our website and I hope to have downloadable forms available on the website as well. Please consider supporting these events. Your support will have much to do with the success of our organization in the future.
Membership Renewals
For many members, the end of your first year of membership is rapidly coming to end. In the coming weeks, we will be mailing out your membership renewal notices. We hope that all of our annual members will continue to support the Association by renewing their membership. We would also like to encourage all veterans to find other 3AD veterans and bring them into the Association.
Store News
The Association Store has managed to obtain many of the unit crests from 3AD units that our members served in. Please check with the store to see if your unit crest is available. We are also able to now take credit card orders.
3AD Veterans In The News
Congratulations to General Colin Powel, a 3AD veteran from the 48th Infantry in the 1950’s on being named Secretary of State in the new administration of President George W. Bush.
Other Reunions
Did you know that there are many reunions being throughout the year for various 3AD sub-unit’s. You can find a listing of the ones we know about in the reunions section at the Association website at www.3ad.org. If you know of a reunion that is not listed, please e-mail the page administrator with the details and we will be glad to post it. Also, if you have attended a reunion in the past and have photo’s and a story to share, please send us that information and we will post it as well.
The following new members have joined since our last newsletter.
YEARS YEARS
NAME IN 3AD NAME IN 3AD
Robert Dixon 1990-92 George Romweber 1960-62
Gordon Shaver 1988-91 Richard Wilson Jr 1988-91
Robert Miller II 1988-91 Ernest Coleman 1984-86
Raymond Fells 1988-91 Richard Davis 1958-60
Jon Ward 1974-76 David Bias 1989-91
Rudolph Rau 1958-60 Aldrin Mora 1987-88
Bernard Williford 1988-89 Harry Neff 1942-45
Leo Magiera 1957-58 John Oyster 1960-62
Ted Michalowski 1941-45 Robert Dial 1957-58
Jose Abiles 1980-84 Niles Hansen 1988-91
Paul Vaughn 1990-93 Jack Painter 1973-74
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