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 pace of the combat was surprising. Combat stress trauma is hardly a new phenomenon. Actors would then improvise much of the dialogue based on director. RecPak is a meal replacement for the outdoors that saves you weight, space and time in the most challenging environments, just add water. 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. When the hawk landed at the FARP, Objective Serpent, Chief and another Ranger unloaded the bodies of the three men and then wept for the loss. The battalion, however, undertook a number of unorthodox measures to gain ground, in addition to their continuous outside-the-wire mindset. Stavros Atlamazoglou is a defense journalist specializing in special operations, a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ), and a Johns Hopkins University graduate. Doctors returned to hospitals. 1st Platoon continued working two buildings dubbed CAS 1 and CAS 2, from which the bulk of the enemy force had rallied and attacked. On April 5, no artillery was fired at the Rangers, and they began expand their perimeter from their original blocking positions. A man stepped out indicating to his apparently pregnant wife inside and held up empty water bottles. Using a hooligan toola combination axe and crowbar used by emergency personnelthe Rangers pried open the heavy metal door. The Many Faces of Napoleon Bonaparte -- What did the French Emperor Actually Look Like? The biggest test of those Ranger qualities began late on April 2, when the first of over 350 Iraqi 155 mm artillery shells began to land around the dam complex. Again the man indicated to his wife and the need for water. Energized by the encounter, the Rangers separated the dam workers into cells, photographed each man, and temporarily restrained them. When Lauder and his team arrived, Feldbusch was not breathing and his face was turning blue. Russ was out on one of A Companys roadblocks set up to keep civilians from wandering onto the dam. They also distributed flyers that they had made using an old ditto machine they found in an abandoned warehouse. As the GMV reversed direction, the gunner manning the Mk 19 40 mm automatic grenade launcher took a point-blank hit from an AK-47 as the vehicle escaped. SPC Feldbusch did, indeed, resume breathing on his own, and the color returned to his face, giving everybody new hope for his survival. As the sun illuminated the surrounding terrain, sniper SSG Ronnie Jones (pseudonym) spotted Iraqis shooting rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) from the west side of the river, 990 meters away. Eight US Marines faced charges in the deaths, but only one was convicted of a crime, that of negligent dereliction of duty.. All Rights Reserved. In 2005, in response to a U.S. and coalition attempt to establish order in the area, AQI decapitated a number of local Iraqi police officers and members of their families, placing their victims heads atop stakes at major intersections in the city of Haditha. There, they linked up with the bulk of 3rd Ranger Battalion, which had jumped in five days earlier. SHARES Haditha Dam was codenamed "Objective Lynx," while an old airfield nearby was codenamed "Objective Serpent.". "We always work well together as a combat team, a well-oiled machine. While 2nd Platoon began its assault, 3rd Platoon focused on seizing Objective Cobalt, which consisted of an entry control point to the power station, the power station itself, and the transformer yard south of the earthen dam. "Intel had briefed us that there was light resistance and eight to 10 personnel on the dam. You must become a subscriber or login to view or post comments on this article. The Battle of Haditha Dam: The beer is on us! 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. Local government began functioning again. Rangers conducted a rare combat jump on Serpent and captured it, allowing the rest of the force to be transported in and letting the Night Stalkers use it as a forward arming and refueling point. The new arrivals had little time for reunions, however, as they were almost immediately ordered to move out for Objective LynxHadithah Dam. 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. These attacks would continue to come every 30 minutes for the next two days. Big-hearted Russ Rippetoe and two Rangers gathered some water bottles and brought them to the car. 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. Securing it was one of the first objectives of US special forces . 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. Thats the way I remember it there may be some detail off here or there, but thats just how I remember it.. Flying in broad daylight, the flight arrived at the dam less than an hour after Feldbusch went down. Star Jared Shaw According to the Coalition Provisional Authority, the inauguration of this turbine on 3 June 2004 signified the first time since 1990 that the power station operated at full capacity. At least, that was the plan.1. [1] Soon after the sniper had been taken care of, two more Rangers discovered three armed and dazed guards in an apparently unmanned shack. as well as other partner offers and accept our. See production, box office & company info, Very skillful exploration of the Iraq war. 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. Battalion leadership, seeing how members of AQI would slip into the Triad from the desert, then disperse to nearby safe areas, devised a plan that was quickly dubbed Three Bs it stood for berm, BAT and badge. By Fred Pearce August 25, 2014 Fighters, weapons, money and supplies flowed into and out of Iraq from Syria through the corridor, as well as between strongholds along it. 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. That night the enemy closed to within two hundred meters of 2nd Platoons positions, pinning down the Rangers with RPGs. Men, women, and children walked the streets freely. Mar 23. A Battle for Haditha Dam: With David Hartzell, Jonathan Wong. The film was shot in an unconventional way whereas instead of a detailed script, there was only an outline of each scene and where the story was going. P.S., The cartoon I made in honor of Chief Greg Coker made it to T-Shirts at SOFREP (Geos Winchester) pretty slick! Russ was a very energetic man of immense courage and always sporting a positive attitude. Their mission was to prevent Saddam Hussein and his forces from destroying the dam. With First Lieutenant (1LT) Graham White on point, the convoy headed northeast into the night, following a route designed to avoid enemy troop concentrations. Mustang vs. Corsair Inside the U.S. Navys 1944 Match-Up Between the Two Fighters, Most Wanted The Nine Worst Nazi War Criminals (and How They Died), Battlefield Stalingrad Four Maps That Tell the Story of World War Twos Pivotal Struggle, Bloody First Contact When Vikings Clashed with Native North Americans. The Iraqi dictator's claims that the US would target and destroy the dam complicated matters further. Within minutes, an A-10 rolled in and dropped a two thousand pound bomb just three hundred meters from 2nd Platoons location. 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. Yet, nobody exited the eastern side of the dam.6, Finally locating a door into the administrative building, White brought up two squads to clear the facility and search for demolitions. The bomb obliterated the attackers, and shattered every window in the dam complex. Toughness aside, Doyles Rangers were also being proactive, helping beat back the Iraqi barrage. Command Sgt. positions. The Chinook evacuated Feldbusch during a break in the artillery attack, and doctors began working on him as soon as he was aboard. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING VETERAN JOURNALISM - JOIN SOFREP+ 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. NOW WATCH: What the US needs to do to prevent a new ISIS in Iraq. Searching the additional structures, the Rangers found that one contained training materials for the antiaircraft artillery school: sand tables of western Iraq, posters detailing Iraqi weapon systems, and photographs of artillery pieces.14. That night, the Night Stalkers fired ordnance as close as 12 meters from the Rangers. He remained on station until he was Bingo fuel and needed to return to the FARP at Objective Serpent. Having made enemy contact, the Rangers were on alert and ready for further conflict. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. A civilian vehicle approached the Rangers' blocking position at one end of the dam. The Rangers followed the same procedure as in the western building, breaking and blowing down doors, and collecting all items of potential intelligence value. 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. After several coordination delays, the Rangers ultimately moved out at 2240, two hours later than planned. One of the Ranger's rounds went through an Iraqi soldier and into a nearby propane tank, which exploded and killed the other two members of the RPG team. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING VETERAN JOURNALISM - JOIN SOFREP+ . Battle for Haditha. Mar 02. US reinforcements arrived and relieved the battered Rangers. Barrett products are used by civilians, sport shooters, law enforcement agencies, the United States military, and more than 75 State Department-approved countries around the world. This was unlike any missionwe'd been taught about in Ranger history. For the next five days, Iraqi forces continued to harass the Rangers at the dam, principally with episodic artillery and mortar fire along with several infantry counterattacks against the U.S. down I could see that I had been hit, but that the round had hit the last chance plate on the back of my body armor. After the "Black Hawk Down" battle in Mogadishu in 1993, Night Stalkers, both pilots and crew, have carried more lethal personal weaponry, including sidearms and M4 rifles. As the battle rages on, a young medic must face his fears when his skills are put to the test in order to save the life of a teammate. While Rangers scrambled to finalize operational details, a pair of AH-6 Little Bird attack helicopters arrived at the assembly site to provide an aerial escort and close air support to the assault force. During their deployment, 3/3 maintained a strong outside the wire presence throughout the Haditha Triad, making great strides in the counterinsurgency campaign in the areabut at a cost; the battalion lost 15 of their members. With permission granted, Birch and Duncan sprinted down the hill, under antiaircraft artillery fire (firing in a direct fire mode) from the south. Bonaparte the Bookworm Napoleon Was An Avid Reader; So What Were His Favourite Books? But a small special-operations contingent was sent to an objective close to the Iraqi capital. With a replacement flight of Little Birds providing reconnaissance, the Rangers breached the final barrier, racing to reach the dam before daylight broke. By One round struck Alans left foot, and then penetrated the trucks oil filter. But a small special-operations contingent was sent to an objective close to the Iraqi capital.. His efforts would prove crucial in the following months, when al Qaeda would launch an all-out, last-ditch effort to keep control of the Haditha Triad. The Rangers located the guards, rendered first aid, and carried them up to the top of the dam, all while still under attack from the south. The Battle for Haditha dam was the single largest engagement of the war fought to control the largest single strategic point of the conflict. Critics Consensus. By what name was Battle for Haditha (2007) officially released in Canada in English? An additional bonus would be by capturing both locations the Iraqi Army would be drawn away from their defense of Baghdad, which was under assault by the US Army V Corps. He was a good man, a damned-good man and well all miss him forever. But the Iraqi forces at Haditha Dam were defeated by then. They kept up the fight, however, on all fronts. The MH-6 had a forward-looking infrared (FLIR) camera to paint targets for the two AH-6s. Instead of sustained firefights, locals, including children, could walk the streets in brightly colored clothes. This new line, stretching over a distance of 223 kilometres (139mi) with 504 towers, has a capacity of 400 kV and allows 350 MW from the Haditha Dam to be added to the national electrical grid. Dividing 2nd Platoon into two elements, 1LT White led one section toward the western administrative tower, and his platoon sergeant, Sergeant First Class (SFC) Jeffrey Duncan, led the other eastward across the causeway. "It put them plumb in mind of aerial. Delta Force recce operators drove through Iraqi lines around the Haditha Dam on customised ATVs, marking targets for Coalition airstrikes resulting in the eventual destruction of a large number of Iraqi armored vehicles and antiaircraft systems. For the Fallen A Co, 3/75 Rangers, CPT Russell Rippetoe/FSO, SSG Nino Livaudais, SPC Ryan Long. As they stepped near, the couple detonated a Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) which instantly killed Russ and the two Rangers. 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 Iraqis, however, kept trying to get back to the dam. A very close-knit team," Coker said. The Battle of Haditha Dam: Mowing Iraqis down like bowling pins. His lines of communication back to H-1 were open, he was getting regular replenishment of ammunition and other supplies, and his casualties and POWs were being promptly evacuated. Headquarters and Services Company, known as H and S, went to the Haditha Dam, just north of the city. Enraged by this loss, his young Marine buddies carry out a brutal retaliation. 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Chief Greg Coker joined Ranger Company C to conduct mission planning for the next important objective in the fight for the dam. 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. The Battle of Haditha was a battle fought between U.S. forces and Ansar al-Sunna in early August 2005 on the outskirts of the town of Haditha, Iraq, which was one of the many towns that were under insurgent control in the Euphrates River valley during 2005. However, the Rangers proved their effectiveness as a strike force by fighting and winning a fierce week-long battle to prevent any such strategic delay, or humanitarian or environmental disaster. Cowed by beheadings, rapes, murder and general intimidation, the locals of the area remained rarely emerged from hiding. 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. And when unbearable conditions forced some to fall into themselves, those same Rangers fought to get back into the fight and help win a dramatic victory. 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. 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. With 1st Squad leader SSG Jesse Ragan in the lead, three vehicles and twenty-seven Rangers maneuvered down the steep embankment into Objective Cobalt. The area exploded in violence as members of each respective company moved into their home forward operating bases throughout the Triad: Echo Company went to the city of Haditha; Fox Company went to Barwana. What You Need To Know About The HADITHA DAM And The FALLEN WoodwardTV 467K subscribers Subscribe 152K views 3 years ago What lies beneath the Haditha Dam in Iraq? For their actions against the enemy, they both received the Silver Star. In the same year, a new power line was established between Haditha and Baghdad with the help of the USACE to restore a line that had previously been destroyed. C-17s flew the tank company and Ranger battalion from Talil to H-1 and then to MSS (Mission Support Site) Grizzly, a desert strip runway established by Delta Force located between Haditha and Tikrit; C Squadron, Delta Force was flown directly to MSS Grizzly. Feb 29. 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. 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