An Infantryman Recalls Desert Storm

By John Westlake

The night when Desert Shield became Desert Storm, I and 30others from the 3-5 Cav Battalion’s Advance Party (aka the Dirty Thirty) had been in the desert for a couple weeks, establishing our Battalion’s TAA (Tactical Assembly Area) Henry.  Three of us from Delta Company carved out our own little section of desert for our Bradley Fighting Vehicles and support vehicles.

Late evening on 17 January, the main body of the 3-5 Cav (Black Knights) Battalion (approximately 500 soldiers) linked up with us.  They were driven out to the desert in a long convoy of yellow school buses.  I remember seeing one bus arrive with its windshield smashed out, having apparently rear-ended the vehicle to its front on the long drive North up Tapline Road.  Our M-2 Bradley Fighting Vehicles (BFV) and other equipment had not yet arrived from Germany. 

The Battalion slept under the stars that evening.  At around 4:30 AM, we were awakened by the blaring of M-8 chemical agent alarms.  Having been through chemical reaction drills in Saudi Arabia, I didn't take it too seriously, but all 500 soldiers were in Mission Oriented Protective Posture (MOPP) Level IV (full chemical gear) in the blink of an eye.  My First Sergeant, 1SG Day, a Vietnam Vet, was the first one dressed.  The company commander, CPT Brown, did his required chemical detection assessment with an M-256 kit and eventually gave us the ‘All Clear.’  While it was still dark, we could see jets flying North over our heads at a high rate of speed.  We knew things had kicked off. 

Between the time Operation Desert Storm Air War began on 17 Jan 1991, until the Ground Phase began on 22 February 1991, my Squad acclimated to its new environment, took part in perimeter defense, and began to prep for combat.   Once we received the mission, which was an Infantry Company Trench Assault, supported by the M2 Bradleys and M1 Abrams tanks, we began rehearsals.  You can refer to my earlier article for details about the rehearsals and that mission.

One pretty impressive thing that happened during this period was that 1st Brigade moved, as a Brigade Combat Team, from TAA Henry northwest to Forward Assembly Area (FAA) Butz.  This was a brigade-level movement rehearsal.  The amazing part is the entire brigade conducted that movement under complete radio listening silence so as not to alert the enemy of our movement closer to the border.  

The War

The "Fighting First" entered the Ground War a little ahead of time.  Other units were not making heavy contact as they crossed the border, so we were ordered to move out early.  We mounted our BFVs, my B Team on D-31, and my A Team on D-32.  We then moved out of Forward Assembly Area "Butz" in northern Saudi Arabia toward the Iraqi frontier.  We crossed the berm constructed by the Iraqi's just before sundown.

Our Combat Engineers had cut breaches through it for the tanks and Bradley's pass through.  I remember a large billboard with a red engineer castle painted on it saying "This breach was brought to you courtesy of the 23d Engineer Battalion" (Task Force 12).  That took the edge off things.

Just before dark, the VII Corps Commander, General Fred Franks, halted us to allow the trucks to catch up to us.  M9 Armored Combat Earthmovers (ACE's) and SEE's (Small Emplacement Excavators) came around in the night to dig in the vehicles and the infantry fighting positions.  It rained hard that night, but the Squad remained outside our vehicles, on the ground, providing security.  Once the trucks caught up, we moved out again.

Our Company, D Co, 3-5 Cav, was task organized with 4thBattalion, 34th Armor (TF 4-34 AR) as part of Task Force Centurions.  Our on-order mission was to clear enemy trenches.  

The Ready First Combat Team (RFCT), 1st Brigade, 3rd Armored Division, under Colonel Bill Nash's command, eventually made contact with the enemy.  The entire force halted, and the tanks and MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket Systems) opened fire to our front.  Air Force ground attack A10 Thunderbolts did loops on our flanks and AH-64 Apache helicopters hovered perfectly still behind us, unleashing unrelenting fury upon the enemy.  This went on for what seemed like hours. 

The "Fighting First" Squad remained mounted until the sun came up, and the explosions stopped.  As the smoke cleared, Iraqi soldiers started walking toward us, waving white rags.  CPL Williams' team dismounted and took the first prisoners, putting them on 23rd Engineer battalion dump trucks to be takenaway, using the 5 “S’s” for processing Enemy Prisoners of War:  Search, Silence, Speed, Safeguard, and Segregate.

The first two are obvious.  Speed refers to getting POWs off ofthe battlefield as quickly as possible and into appropriate collection areas. Safeguard means keeping them safe from combat actions, which is why they were put on Engineer dump trucks.  Segregate means separating officers from enlisted men.  We soon had too many to handle and, after disarming them, just pointed them south, showing them the direction away from the fighting.  We then mounted up on our BFVs and continued forward. We met very little resistance at first, which in my opinion, helped us ease into combat.  

Tensions were high initially, but everyone in the Task Force soon settled into a professional rhythm.  These first units were regular Army troops, not the Republican Guard.  Regular soldiers had a green triangle patch on their shoulder.  Republican Guard soldiers had a red triangle patch.  The regulars were not as well-trained or equipped as the Republican Guard and the Air War had demoralized them.  Many of them had bandages from the earlier bombings.  The Republican Guard soldiers were a different story.   Better trained, fed, and equipped, they hadrecent combat experience during the Iran/Iraq War………………………..

There was one unfortunate event during this period.  3rd AD initially headed north through the berms along the Saudi/Iraq border.  At a certain point, the Division turned east, toward the Wadi Al-Batin and the Kuwaiti border.   The 4-7 Cav, 3rd AD’sreconnaissance unit, had been screening between the Division's right flank unit (4-34 Armor Centurions) of the RFCT and the 2ndACR. They got caught between TF Centurions and an Iraqi Armored brigade.  The 2nd ACR had taken part in the famous Battle of 73 Easting a few hours earlier.  The cavalry scouts ended up much closer to the enemy units than they preferred andwere attempting a retrograde operation.  It was getting dark and the sky was full of burning oilwell fire smoke. TF 4-34 AR immediately made enemy contact and started firing.  Several M-3 Cavalry Fighting Vehicles (CFV's) from Alpha Troop, 4-7 Cav were struck from both sides.   three CFVs were destroyed, twoCavalry troopers were killed in action and approximately 10were wounded. This happened right in front of us.  This action later became known as the Battle of Phase Line Bullet.  

While maneuvering toward the Wadi al-Batin and Kuwaitiborder at night, our Platoon encountered a minefield right in front of some Republican Guard positions.  The minefield had recently been breached by the 23rd Engineer Battalion, using a Mine Clearing Line Charge (MCLC).   Once the lane had been blown open, it was ‘proofed’ by an M1 Tank with a mine-plowfrom TF 4-34.  TF 4-34 Armor established near-side security,ran a tank-plow down the lane, and then set up far-side security.The lane was marked with infrared strobe lights that could only be seen with night vision devices.     The rest of TF 4-34’s tanks rapidly moved through the breach and attacked the enemy.  Then it was our turn.  Our lead Bradley, D-32, started to turn into the entrance of the lane and threw a track. Rather than the typical desert sand, the minefield had been emplaced on heavily-graveled ground. No doubt this was done to keep sand from covering the mines and provide a stable base for the mines.  As the tanks moved through the lane, they had caused major ruts in the gravel.  Our Platoon SGT, PSG Davis, maneuvered his Bradley, D-34, up to it to assess the situation.  He dismounted on the edge of the minefield and told the driver to put D-32 in reverse.  The track went right back on, and the platoon negotiated the breach without further incident.   Luckily, our tanks had eliminated all enemy tanks in the vicinity.  Being bogged down at the breach lane of a minefield is not a good feeling.  Active minefields are covered by 2 things – observation and direct/indirect fire.  

Major General Funk, our Division Commander, held First Brigade in reserve until it was time to hit the Republican Guard.  At this point the Brigade was the freshest unit in the Division, and ready to take care of business. This was a mounted battle.  The tanks of TF 4-34 AR (Centurions) engaged the Iraqi T-72'scausing the enemy tanks to blow up sending their turrets spiraling into the sky and landing upside down next to the smoking hull.  Unlike the regular Army troops however, the Republican Guard troops were not surrendering.  We were enjoying a major success until the Cease Fire was called 0800 hours the next morning.  

Once we realized it was, in fact, a cease fire, everyone fell asleep.  Some leaders tried hard to stay awake, but after almost four days with practically no sleep, it was impossible.  Our Brigade Sergeant Major, CSM Davis, came to our position to congratulate us.  We sat there and watched the Iraqi's bring trucks with lowboy trailers into the desert to retrieve their tanks to take back to Baghdad.  These convoys were later to be destroyed by the 24th Infantry Division on the "Highway to Hell".

A total of six soldiers from the Ready First Combat Team lost their lives during the operation.  Later, when we all returned to Germany, the local German community had a monument erected on the corner of our parade field honoring these soldiers.

Being some of the last soldiers to enter the region, we were some of the last combat troops to leave.  The "Fighting First" was to take up positions on the Demarcation Line (DML) - a buffer zone along the Northern Kuwaiti border, to cover everyone else's move out of the area.  This is also where General Schwarzkopf met with the Iraqi Generals to work out the Cease Fire.  

While there, a five-man band of soldiers from TF 4-34 AR gave us a concert(!) close to where the fighting had stopped.  We piled the entire platoon onto two BFVs to drive to the BN Assembly Area.  En route, one of the Bradleys, D-33, struck a landmine. Fortunately, there were no casualties, but everyone was shook up.  The right side of the Bradley was black and had gashes in the armor from the blast.  The 4-34 AR Battalion Commander coordinated to have some female medical personnel trucked up to the Assembly Area for us to dance with.  I remember one of the girls got up and sang Vanilla Ice's "Ice IceBaby".  The guys were on their best behavior, as we had not seen any females for a while.  The whole event was right out of the movies.  

The Task Force then moved to a rear assembly where the Platoon was deployed under a highway overpass outside the border town of Safwan. We were in a roadblock position where we had to check all traffic going into and out of Baghdad.  All Iraqi military personnel were taken out of their vehicles, put into my holding area under the overpass, then trucked to a POW camp.  Civilians were directed to a refugee camp.  We did this for about a month until we were relieved by United Nationspersonnel.   An Iraqi two-star General surrendered to my squad.  He spoke very good English.   On another occasion, we had to quell a small riot while passing out rations (MRE’s).  The Republican Guard prisoners were shoving the others into the concertina wire to get all the MRE’s.  I took immediate “creative” action to restore order, for which the Battalion Commander gave me a cigar.  

From the DML we moved as a Brigade to Kuwait City.  Moving through the Mutla Ridge choke point, the highway was congested with destroyed vehicles that the Iraqi forces had usedto escape the Coalition assault.  Picture a rush hour traffic jam being shot up by jets and helicopters; that is what this was.  Once into Kuwait City we moved into a large storage facility, which we garrisoned and named Camp Thunder Rock.  This was later to become Camp Doha.  We stayed here until relieved by the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment from Germany in June.  

We flew out of the Kuwait International Airport back to Frankfurt, Germany. The Division Commander greeted each one of us as we got off the plane. I remember how green Germany was in great contrast to the sandy desert. Yellow ribbons, tied by the wives, adorned the barracks.

Once in Germany, a little unit restructuring took place, but it quickly became business as usual. The whole affair was similar in many ways to a major training exercise.  We soldiered on and soon found ourselves at the Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels training areas, training for the next conflict.

I would like to dedicate this article to one of my Soldiers - a member of my nine-man infantry squad, Specialist John Reid.  John came to my Squad just prior to deployment.  His parent unit, 5-8 CAV, 8th ID, was standing down.  All infantrymen (11Bs) from that unit were reassigned to other mechanized infantry units in Germany to bring them up to 100 percentstrength.  John was a great Infantryman who had earned the Expert Infantryman’s Badge.  
John took his own life a few years ago.  RIP John, you are not forgotten.  

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The story of 1st Squad, 3d Platoon, Delta Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Calvary, 1st Brigade, 3rd Armored Division (SPEARHEAD) during Operation Desert Shield, 1990 by John Westlake

 

This was one of many Infantry squads that served during Operation Desert Storm (ODS).   As a part of the 3rd Armored Division's (SPEARHEAD) 1st Brigade / Ready First Combat Team, we were stationed at Ayers Kaserne (The Rock)  in Kirchgoens, Germany.  The United States Army's V Corps was in position north of Frankfurt to deter the Soviet Union / Warsaw Pact, from invading Western Europe through a terrain feature known as the Fulda Gap.  This gap was like a tactical HOV lane into the heart of Germany.


L to R:  SPC Alejandro, SPC Dempsey, PFC Wardman, PFC Reid, SSG Westlake, CPL Williams, PVT Rosado, PVT Williams and PFC Zappone

The squad had trained together for almost 2 years, with little turnover, prior to ODS.  This allowed us to become a very cohesive, proficient, combat-capable unit.  We had conducted quite a bit of Infantry training together in Germany, attending the prestigious Platoon Confidence Training (PCT) at Bad Tölz; Military Operations in Urban Terrain  (MOUT) training at Doughboy City, Berlin; the annual 3rd Armored Division Ranger Camp;  the Combined Arms Maneuver Training Center in Hohenfels; and live fire training at Grafenwoehr.  Soldiers of the 3rd Armored Division typically trained in the field for over 200 days of the year.  We were very capable at executing raids, recons and ambushes, and had always met the standard during Squad ARTEPS.  Although no one was RANGER qualified, we trained to RANGER standards.  All squad members were experts with their weapons, and some had been awarded the Expert Infantry Badge.  

Mechanized Infantry soldiers have a military occupational specialty of 11M, meaning that they have received additional training on the M-2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle (BFV).  3rd Platoon, as well as the others in the company, was always understrength.  Although authorized two nine-man squads, we generally consolidated what we had into one element, manning priority weapons first.  Once we received the word in November of 1990 that we would be deploying from Germany to Saudi Arabia, we were plussed up to 100% TO&E with a new squad leader who came from the Berlin Brigade, which was standing down, and Infantrymen from the 8th ID, which was also standing down.  My new soldiers were 11B's, from 5-8 Infantry, Mainz, FRG, who had not yet transitioned to the BFV.  They had been using the M113 APC.  These men were highly motivated and quickly integrated into the squad and platoon.  They were then given a crash course on how load ammo and missiles, and fire the port weapons, for the BFV's.  

A squad is broken down into two fire teams - Fire Team Alpha and Fire Team Bravo.  Each team has a team leader, normally a sergeant or a corporal, and each team member has a specific duty position within the team.

Here is how the "Fighting First" was broken down...

Weapons:

Myself and the two team leaders were armed with a M16A2 with an M203 40 mm grenade launcher bolted underneath it.  These provided direct and indirect fire capability to the squad, allowing the leaders to mark targets with smoke rounds or tracers for the squad to mass fires on.  Each leader carried high explosive and smoke grenades.

The automatic riflemen were issued the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW).  The SAW is a light machinegun which fires the same size round as the M16 (5.56mm).  Each SAW gunner was issued 600 rounds of belted ammo in 3 plastic drums- one fitted to the gun, and each of the others strapped to their thighs to allow quick change.  These weapons provided the most firepower to the squad.

The riflemen carried an M16A2, with 120 (+) rounds of 5.56 ammo.  The riflemen also carried additional ammo for the SAW's and the M203's, hand grenades, and mines.  They were my designated marksmen.

Unique to Bradley units was the M231 Firing Port Weapon.  This is a submachine gun version of the M16, which fires fully automatic only, and has a rate of fire of about 1200 rounds per minute. Each vehicle deployed with 2 of these (authorized 6). It is designed to be screwed through the wall of a BFV and fired through a port by looking out of a periscope (vision block).  Each one having a brass catcher and a gas exhaust fan to expel toxic weapons gases outside the vehicle.   They fired pure tracer, so the gunner could use “burst on target”/ BOT firing technique.  I fabricated a harness out of my rubber pants suspenders and carried one under my armpit, which augmented my M16/M203.

Rockets and missiles:    M136 84 mm AT4 anti-tank rockets, which were an improvement over the old 77mm M72A2 Light anti-tank weapon LAW.   We also had M47 Dragon - a 90mm wire-guided anti-tank missile, with day and night (thermal) sights.

High Explosive Hand Grenades, Tear Gas Grenades, and Thermite Grenades, as well as Claymore Anti-personnel Mines, and "Toe-poppers" little plastic mines designed to --- were also issued.  

Each soldier was issued the M-9 Bayonet.  This was the latest model, which was pretty heavy duty, and when connected with its scabbard could be used as a wire cutter.

As you can see, a Mech Infantry squad is heavily armed.  This provided an overwhelming advantage to the squad and platoon, compared to Airborne or Light Infantry.  The organic firepower, combined with the speed and protection of the four Bradleys, provided unsurpassed lethality.

The mission of the Infantry is to close with, and destroy enemy forces by means of fire and maneuver, and to repel his counterattacks, using hand-to-hand combat if necessary. 

Other Equipment:

Personnel protection:   Kevlar helmet and vest, although not bulletproof, would protect the soldier from shrapnel.  Our load-bearing equipment was worn over this.

Night Vision:   Night observation device (NOD).  Either the AN/PVS-5 or the newer AN/PVS-7B Night Vision Goggles (NVG's) and AN/PVS-4's for the weapons, as well as a thermal sight for the Dragon.  Between these and the BFV's thermal vision, we owned the night.

Protection from deadly chemical agents:   M17A1 Chemical Protective Mask, 2 charcoal impregnated Chemical Protective Over Garments with rubber boots and gloves, Chemical Detection Kits, Nerve Agent Antidote Kits, and Chemical decontamination Kits.  Radiation dosimeters were located at the company level, along with special body bags designed to contain any chemical contamination.

Communications:  I carried a PRC-77 Radio/Transmitter, to be able to communicate with the BFV's and the other squad.  Within the squad we used voice and hand and arm signals to communicate.

I volunteered for the Company Advance Party.  I was recently divorced.  Most of the NCO’s had families.  SGT Ivey, my senior Team Leader, stepped up to prepare the squad for deployment.  Myself and two soldiers from the other 2 platoons joined the Battalion Advance Party, nicknamed the "Dirty Thirty".  We flew out of Frankfurt on a civilian airliner, andarrived in Damam, Saudi Arabia December 16th.  We were housed in a camp called Cement City.  Major Lough, our Officer in Charge and Battalion S-3, organized a Christmas party for us.   We stayed there 2 weeks, then moved out to the open desert in the North, to prepare for the arrival of the rest of the Battalion.

NORTH TO THE TAA:  We rode on commuter buses up Tapline Road, to the Northern Saudi desert.  It was New Year’s Eve.  I happened to find a six pack of near beer (no alcohol allowed in that country).  Lieutenant Murray, the Battalion Scout Platoon Leader and I proposed a toast to what lay ahead.  He would later be awarded the Silver Star.

Part of our daily routine was Stand-to.  This is a morning ritual our unit conducted every day once we moved out into the desert.  Stand-to started one half hour before sunrise, and ended one half hour after sunrise.  This goes back to earlier wars, a popular time to attack. Every soldier was expected to be packed up, in his fighting position, scanning his sector.  I would move from position to position, making sure everyone was up and ready.  After stand-to, we would eat an MRE (meal ready to eat), really looking forward to burning the trash in a fire pit to warm up. December mornings in the desert can be cold.

The Mission

Delta Company, 3-5 Cavalry, was task organized with an M1 Abrams Tank Battalion, 4-34 Armor from the 8th Infantry Division from Mainz, Germany.  This Battalion replaced one of the Ready First Combat Teams, which did not deploy.  4-34 AR, "Task Force Centurions" was the only combat unit to deploy from the 8th ID.  It was commanded by LTC Burton, whose nickname was "Soldier Hard".  He was a little like General George Patton, and a little like the Cav Commander on Apocalypse Now - the "I love the smell of napalm" guy.   

Given the mission to destroy elements of the Iraqi Republican Guard, TF Centurions was to cross the Kuwaiti border into Iraq and move as part of General Schwarzkopf's "Hail Mary" to Objective Collins, a large piece of desert northwest of Kuwait City.  The TF expected to encounter enemy armor and Infantry dug-in in elaborate defensive belts.  Tank crews learned to respect Infantry soldiers armed with anti-tank missiles after the Arab/Israeli wars of the 60's.  So, as Task Force Centurion approached these defensive positions, the tanks were to halt andprovide near and far security for the Bradley's approach up to the trenches.  As the tanks and Bradley's engaged the enemy, the ramps would be lowered, and the Infantry squads would dismount.   Once online at the ramp, either with one team on each side of the vehicle or the entire squad on one side or the other (terrain dependent) the squad was to quickly use individual movement techniques to come on-line with the front road wheel of the vehicle.  I would then cook off a grenade and throw it into the trench at the entrance location.  At that point, while being covered by the Bradleys' 25mm automatic cannon and coaxial machine gun, the entire squad would rush the trench, entering just after the explosion.  Then the squad would assault forward down the length of the trench. The key to a successful assault is speed and violence.   After clearing the trench, the soldiers were to mount up, and the TF would move forward to the next dug-inposition.

The "Fighting First" was selected by Captain Brown, our Company Commander, to be the lead squad in the Company trench assault.  There are a total of 6 squads in a Company, organized into 3 platoons.  

After many rehearsals conducted in accurately reproduced trenches (provided by aerial reconnaissance and dug by the 23rdCombat Engineer BN) the tactics, techniques and procedures we developed were to lead with the 3 SAW gunners. PFC Zappone was the lead machine gunner, placing maximum firepower to the front, followed by the other 2 SAW gunners, who were to fire down branches.  CPL Williams was to throw a grenade around each corner encountered prior to rounding the corner.  I was to be located between the two fire teams.    Behind me was the trail team, who would carry more ammo, evacuate casualties, and replace any wounded SAW gunners.  Our Platoon Sergeant, SFC Davis, was to have his BFV straddling the trench, firing his Coax Machine gun over our heads to suppress the enemy as we moved down the trench.  1LT Walter, our Platoon Leader, would dismount (early doctrine provided that the PL should be on the ground to lead the platoon while the platoon sergeant controledthe 4 Bradleys), coordinating between the two 9-man squads and the 4 BFV's. The Second Squad would enter the trench to provide overwhelming firepower to eliminate enemy resistance.  Fluorescent VS-17 panels were secured on our backs and my radio antenna to prevent fratricide.  The Bradleys were to provide near and far security with their 25mm automatic cannons, 7.62mm coaxial machine guns, and TOW missile launchers.  This ensured we would not receive any unwanted enemy pressure during the assault.  A reassuring measure was that the Combat Ambulance, a M113 Armored Personnel Carrier with red crosses painted on all 4 sides, was to drive right up to the toe-hold, to quickly evac any casualties.  A combat medic accompanied us into the trench with his giant aid bag, loaded with IV bags, hemorrhage control equipment, airway management systems, splints and morphine.  Each soldier was designated as a primary or alternate aid and litter team member.

This mission was constantly rehearsed, day, night, and with our chemical gear on.  I realized during one rehearsal, when I gave the command to "fix bayonets", that only 3 of the 9 soldiers had weapons that were capable - the 203's and SAW's were not capable of attaching bayonets.  (Although CPL Williams quickly detached his 203 tube and fixed his bayonet).  Although there was no expectation of a bayonet assault, they were to discourage the enemy from batting our muzzle away while in close quarters.  Of all things to find in the desert, I came across a dental mirror, which I stuck in my helmet and used as a "rear view mirror", to monitor the situation to my rear.  Situational awareness was paramount for everyone involved.  

We had the plan worked out as well as it could be.  The squad was confident but knew what could happen.  At this point, we still did not know what type of enemy resistance to expect butwe expected a prolonged fight.  We sat in the open desert on high alert for over a month, ready to go at a moment's notice.  Honed to a razor's edge, tension mounting day after day.   I didn't share my thoughts with my men, but I really did not expect everyone to make it.  Scud missiles came out of the north, flying over us headed toward Riyadh.  Some were engaged by Patriot Missiles, some were not.  It was becoming very "real" to everyone.  Rosado and Zappone were married, Zap had a young daughter.  We made a pact that if anyone were killed, another squad member would contact the family.  I eventually received the operations order and issued it to the squad.   We were locked and loaded.   When our battalion chaplain, Captain (RANGER) Moran, came to our position the night before the Ground War started, everyone got a Bible or a Rosary and prayed.

To be continued in 2026 – the 35th anniversary of Operation Desert Storm.