battle for haditha dambattle for haditha dam

The Haditha Dam also controlled the flow of the Euphrates into the lower Euphrates/Tigris River Valley. We were quickly in an Alamo position calling in all the air support we could get. Amazingly, none of the Rangers was hit. Meanwhile, Rangers on the eastern side engaged a truck carrying fourteen Iraqi soldiers leading to a firefight that the Rangers won, killing at least five Iraqis. Holding fire and calling out commands in Arabic, Staff Sergeant (SSG) James Narrow (pseudonym) and several other Rangers flex-cuffed the guards to a handrail along the road. All day on April 1, groups of 50 to 100 Iraqi solders would form up in human wave attacks on 3rd/C, only to be beaten back by the two Ranger 120 mm mortar tubes, airstrikes, and accurate small arms fire. Composed of the city of Haditha and the outlying towns of Haqlaniyah, Barwana and Albu Hyatt, the Haditha Triad lies along the Euphrates River corridor, deep in the desert, far from Baghdad. On 1 April, C squadron, Delta Force and 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment conducted a night-time ground assault into the target on foot and in armored vehicles against the Haditha Dam complex. Battle of Haditha Dam: The saga comes to an end. A writer and photojournalist who spent time in Iraq and Afghanistan. Combat stress trauma is hardly a new phenomenon. A Battle for Haditha Dam Episode aired Jan 24, 2016 YOUR RATING Rate Drama Iraq 2003: A group of U.S. Army Rangers fights to take control of Haditha Dam when they realize they are outnumbered. They are hardly targets of no significance. While the hindsight of bystanders is always 20/20, the crucible of battle makes the situation at the moment of truth far less certain for those in the fight. By midday of the 1st, CPT Doyle felt that the Rangers effectively controlled the dam. Captain David Doyle, B Company, 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, interview by David Jenkins, 23 October 2003, Fort Benning, GA, tape recording, USASOC History Office Classified Files, Fort Bragg, NC. A Battle For Haditha Dam Jan 24, 2016 | 42m 11s | tv-14 v,l | CC Iraq 2003: A group of U.S. Army Rangers fights to seize control of Haditha Dam - a strategically key location in Operation. By 3 April, the enemy mortar fire attacks had declined to one round every two hours. Unable to access the area from the top of the dam, CPT Taylor directed his men to reverse course and head back through 1st Platoons blocking position. Soon after daybreak, the Rangers from the 3rd Company on the western side of the dam started taking RPG fire where Staff Sergeant Ronnie Jones, a Ranger sniper killed three Iraqi soldiers equipped with RPGs. The Battle of Haditha Dam: The beer is on us! RecPak is a meal replacement for the outdoors that saves you weight, space and time in the most challenging environments, just add water. Two hours later, the building was clear. These attacks would continue to come every 30 minutes for the next two days. With American forces remaining long after the removal of Saddam Hussein, one of the key tasks was to protect the critical elements of the Iraqi infrastructure, some of which they had helped to secure in the first place. Besides small-arms ground fire which caused severe damage to Coker's chopper that crew chiefs mended with duct tape the Night Stalkers had to account for hidden anti-aircraft trucks and surface-to-air missiles. Actors would then improvise much of the dialogue based on director. 3rd Battalions mission was to draw the Iraqi Armys attention way from the dam, so that special operations forces could cross and secure the facility. The convoy lost its aerial escort when a ground vehicles broken gearbox delayed progress to the point where the Little Birds had to divert for fuel.3. Coker, a Night Stalker pilot and author of "Death Waits in the Dark," spent 30 years in uniform and completed 11 combat tours. One of the most telling examples of their brutality occurred during the deployment of the Third Battalion of the 25th Marine Regiment in 2005, when AQI killed a total of 48 members of the battalion over the course of their time there. The Battle of Haditha Dam took place in 2003. By April 6, despite an occasional 155 mm artillery round lobbed into their positions, the Rangers had expanded their perimeter several thousand yards downstream. George was hit in the side where he had no plate, and an Air Force CCT man was hit in the jaw. They kept up the fight, however, on all fronts. The ensuing four-day battle was the single largest engagement of the entire war, with 22 Iraqi troops engaged for each US commando present. While most of the rounds fell in the lake, every platoon had a few shells fall within a kilometer of their position. SHARES As the section moved into blocking positions, they suddenly heard gunfire.5, While 1LT White was walking across the road and searching for an entrance to the western administrative buildings, he heard a Ranger shout, Hes got a gun! SSG Smith had observed someone dive under a piece of sheet metal, and then spotted the barrel of a weapon. Chief came to be friends with the Fire Support Officer (FSO) of Company A, Captain Russ Rippetoe, in the time they spent working together to bring effective fire support to the Rangers. While several of the four Ranger casualties had been serious, helicopters from the 160th SOAR (some flying in broad daylight) had successfully evacuated them back to safety. During the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, most Coalition troops entered the country from the south. . The Chinook evacuated Feldbusch during a break in the artillery attack, and doctors began working on him as soon as he was aboard. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of any material on this site without expressand written permission from the author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, United States Army Rangers seized the Haditha Dam on 1 April in order to prevent it from being destroyed. The invasion of Iraq in March 2003 was marked by a shock-and-awe campaign that showcased the undisputed conventional might of the US military. The rest of 3rd/C continued to take heavy Iraqi fire from a pair of buildings, which would continue to be a problem for the next three days. At H1, medical personnel transferred Feldbusch to a Forward Surgical Team for emergency care.19 SPC Feldbusch eventually received a Purple Heart for his injuries, and a Bronze Star for valor.20, The artillery attack seemed to be a turning point in the battle for Hadithah Dam. Over the course of the next few days, mortar and artillery fire steadily decreased. The destruction of the dam would have significantly affected the functioning of the country's electrical grid and could cause major flooding downstream from the dam. Doctors returned to hospitals. John Gale (pseudonym) said, I was facing forward when I felt this blow to my lower left back. The An investigation of the massacre of 24 men, women and children in Haditha, Iraq allegedly shot by 4 U.S. Marines in retaliation for the death of a U.S. Marine killed by a roadside bomb. The Iraqis, however, kept trying to get back to the dam. Back up on top of the dam, 1st and 2nd/B were in their blocking positions and working on fortifying their various points of fire when the Iraqis facing them finally began to come to life. Already tired from almost two weeks of continuous operations, and fully exposed to the elements and noise of the barrage, some of the young Rangers began to fall victim. The medics removed Feldbuschs blood-covered helmet and suctioned his airway, hoping to avoid a tracheotomy. In 2004, the Gulf Region Division of the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) carried out restoration works on one of the turbines to restore the dam's hydroelectric power station to full capacity. Then, as if in a movie, he hit it dead on: there was the gravel road, and the asphalt road two hundred meters further on. Visit his website www.darack.com or follow him on Twitter @EdDarack. The bomb obliterated the attackers, and shattered every window in the dam complex. Buy HD $2.99 More purchase options 4. During the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, most Coalition troops entered the country from the south. U.S. Army photo. At least, that was the plan.1. Pilots and crew also fired 6,000 rounds of 5.56 mm ammunition from their personal M-4 rifles and dropped 90 M-67 fragmentation grenades, making four runs to rearm and refuel. B Squadron came and relieved us. NOW WATCH: What the US needs to do to prevent a new ISIS in Iraq. They secured the antiaircraft artillery academy to the south, and cleared out the cache of munitions. The senior employee of the group expedited the search for demolitions by guiding a squad to key locations within the facility. Following the Battle of Haditha Dam, Delta Force handed the dam over to the Rangers and headed north to conduct ambushes along the highway above Tikrit, tying up Iraqi forces in the region and attempting to capture fleeing high-value targets trying to escape to Syria. The Ranger 3rd Company endured a withering barrage of Iraqi small-arms fire from a pair of buildings, which continued over the next three days, until the Rangers were forced to call in twenty airstrikes on the structures. While gathering intelligence about enemy locations and troop strengths, CPT Doyle received a message from Major (MAJ) Kilburn (pseudonym), the battalion XO; at 1400, B Company had received a digitally transmitted fragmentation order to seize Hadithah Dam and prevent its destruction. The angle of attack prevented the Rangers from returning effective fire, so they were forced to call in air support. - May 12, 2010. positions. For the Fallen A Co, 3/75 Rangers, CPT Russell Rippetoe/FSO, SSG Nino Livaudais, SPC Ryan Long. Energized by the encounter, the Rangers separated the dam workers into cells, photographed each man, and temporarily restrained them. By the end of their deploymentafter 23 of their ranks had died and 177 having sustained serious woundsAQI forces in the area were finally defeated. While it took time, the Americans eventually wound up destroying 24 Iraqi mortars, 28 155 mm artillery pieces, and 23 AAA guns while on the dam. Soon after 1st Platoons firefight, CPT Doyle repositioned his troops and prepared for the next phase of the once-uncomplicated mission. On 30 March, Captain (CPT) David Doyle led B Company, and the attached section of 120 mm heavy mortars, from H1 to a remote desert landing strip (DLS) for refuel on the way to a remain-over-day (ROD) site. The Delta operators conducted reconnaissance of the dam before the main assault. Company B, along with Mo, was still on the dam holding out as best they could, all the while waiting for long-overdue relief. We sent a hundred guys, and they had like a battalion, so we were outnumbered. Opening his well-worn Ranger handbook on the hood of his vehicle, Doyle quickly constructed an operations order. But for that, I would almost certainly be dead.. As the vehicle retreated, leaving a trail of oil behind it, another round hit MK19 gunner Corporal (CPL) Jon Gale (pseudonym) in his body armor, knocking him backwards. Thank you. geo sends. [1] By April 6, 2003, reinforcements, including a brace of Abrams main battle tanks, began to arrive. One of the largest dams in the world, the Haditha complex provided fully one-third of the Iraqi electrical grid load in 2003. The Battle for Haditha dam was the single largest engagement of the war fought to control the largest single strategic point of the conflict. According to the Marines of 3/3 and 2/3 who followed the news of the area for years after these deployments, ISIS never took the Haditha Triad area. With 1st Squad leader SSG Jesse Ragan in the lead, three vehicles and twenty-seven Rangers maneuvered down the steep embankment into Objective Cobalt. All day on 1 April, groups of fifty to one-hundred Iraqi soldiers engaged in "human wave" style attacks on 3rd Company, only to be destroyed by the two Ranger 120mm mortars and small arms fire, as well as U.S. Air Force airstrikes. Learn how your comment data is processed. The Herculean task of clearing nine floors of ten offices each, a control room, locked bathrooms, and balconies, rested solely on Whites section of approximately twenty Rangers. By what name was Battle for Haditha (2007) officially released in Canada in English? The Rangers called in airstrikes, which hit the structures with a total of 20 bombs. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Ed Darak is the author of The Warriors of Anbar. Later the Rangers captured an Iraqi forward observer dressed as a civilian after sinking his kayak with .50 caliber machine gun fire, the observer had maps of all of the Rangers positions in and around the dam. About the same time, 3rd/C began to move down into Objective Cobalt, on the river level below the dam face. See more stories on Insider's business page. PO Box 1077 MURFREESBORO, Tennessee 37133 United States, P.O. Despite grave threats to him, his family, and those serving under him, Farouk agreed. I just saw this movie and found it very moving. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Flying in broad daylight, the flight arrived at the dam less than an hour after Feldbusch went down. Joyce Shannon, Neighbors seek to help soldier injured in combat in Iraq,. The bullet-riddled and oil-leaking vehicle finally died just short of 1st Platoons position. What to know. The same thing happened to 5th Green Berets and some British Special Boat Service pipe hitters on the first night of the war; both were hit and both retreated. Cowed by beheadings, rapes, murder and general intimidation, the locals of the area remained rarely emerged from hiding. Russ was out on one of A Companys roadblocks set up to keep civilians from wandering onto the dam. Our medic worked on George but there was just nothing he could do. What lies beneath the. CPT Doyle soon figured out that his mission was expanding by the minute, because at the DLS his company was supplemented by a platoon from C Company and attachments from 3rd Battalions tactical operations center (TOC) II: an Air Force enlisted terminal attack controller (ETAC), a physician assistant (PA), the Command Sergeant Major (CSM), and the battalions executive officer (XO). Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. The 8km-long Haditha dam and its hydro-electrical facility, located to the north-west of Baghdad, supply 30% of Iraq's electricity. The Battle of Haditha Dam took place in 2003. South of the dam, a Ranger platoon secured the dam's power station and electricity transformer against sabotage. In the early days of the war, American forces never managed to establish an enduring presence in the region, which allowed AQI to lay down roots there. The cost of the line was US$56.7 million and was paid by Iraq's oil revenues. The time: 1730 hours. Read Next: Battle of Haditha Dam: The saga comes to an end One man flew the gunship while the other leaned outside and gunned downed the Iraqis below. Thats the way I remember it there may be some detail off here or there, but thats just how I remember it.. US commanders chose the Rangers of B Company, 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment to take the dam. There was no enemy activity to be sensed, none in the slightest. SSG Narrow cleared Jones to engage, and in seconds the silent round from Jones rifle struck the first Iraqi, passed through his body, and hit the propane tank, which exploded and killed the other two men.9, Soon after the three Iraqis were taken care of, CPT Doyle directed Duncan to move his element and secure the eastern side of the dam. The choppers carried so much ammunition that they could barely hover and had to be constantly moving to keep from crashing. Three Rangers were killed on 3 April by a VBIED at the blocking positions as they were searching a car;[2] the car was driven by a young pregnant Iraqi woman who seemed distressed and asking for water. Chief Greg Coker coordinated a Blackhawk helicopter to retrieve the bodies of the three deceased Rangers. Stores were shuttered, schools closed and hospitals inoperable, all the while the enemy would attack and then slip away. Since they did not have counterbattery radar, observers had to visually pick up mortar sites, observation posts, and artillery pieces one at a time, and guide airstrikes to take them out. The Battle of Haditha Dam took place in 2003. Sniper attacks and ambushes by insurgent bands armed with machine guns and rocket propelled grenades erupted throughout region. Knowing that the Night Stalkers had stayed long beyond the protection of darkness, he released them with gratitude. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider The raid prevented a potential humanitarian and environmental disaster along the Euphrates River, and mitigated the risk to coalition forces rapidly advancing toward Baghdad. The three Iraqis were similarly dealt with. Again the man indicated to his wife and the need for water. On that first day alone, the three Little Birds expended an astounding 231 rockets, 66,000 rounds of 7.62 mm mini-gun ammunition, and 8,000 rounds of .50-caliber ammunition. Your donations help keep MHN afloat. Three Ranger platoons seized the dam's administrative buildings with after initially heavy opposition, while a pair of AH-6 little birds orbited overhead providing close air support to the Rangers. The 160th is constantly training with Army SOF units Rangers and Delta. Stores opened. Team Gravy was headed for a break and to wait for their next assignment. Read all Director Nick Broomfield Writers After several coordination delays, the Rangers ultimately moved out at 2240, two hours later than planned. However, when the Iraqis shot at the lead vehicle and then dove into a bunker, the Rangers concluded that these particular armed individuals were, indeed, hostile. Returning to the ROD site, CPT Doyle assembled his First Sergeant, MAJ Kilburn, and SFC Stanley Morgan (pseudonym), the fire support noncommissioned officer, to develop a plan. The Battle of Haditha Dam: Mowing Iraqis down like bowling pins. The 2nd Squad Rangers repositioned their vehicles on the north side of the road and responded to the enemy fire with MK19 grenade launchers and heavy weapons of their own. Sergeant First Class James Lauder (pseudonym), B Company, 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, interview by David Jenkins, 23 October 2003, Fort Benning, GA, tape recording, USASOC History Office Classified Files, Fort Bragg, NC. Slip away troops engaged for each US commando present links are at the top the! Troops and prepared for the Fallen a Co, 3/75 Rangers, CPT felt. Said, I was facing forward when I felt this blow to my lower back... Troops entered the country from the title Rangers from returning effective fire, so we were.! 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