What has happened to CPT Myer must be simply fantastic for morale these days.
Posted on 03/12/2010 10:30:06 PM PST by smokingfrog
A U.S. Army officer who was honored for valor after his combat outpost in Afghanistan was attacked has also received a letter of reprimand for failing to secure the base before the attack, according to Army officials. Such a letter normally would prevent career advancement.
U.S. Army Capt. Matthew Myer received the Silver Star for his part in repelling a Taliban attack on his small combat outpost in eastern Afghanistan in July 2008.
The attack, near the village of Wanat, is still the deadliest ground combat of the war involving U.S. troops. A coordinated Taliban attack from the steep hills surrounding the base almost resulted in the outpost being overrun.
According to troops who survived, the Taliban came at the base with about 200 fighters, outnumbering the U.S. forces at the base. In the end nine soldiers were killed and 12 were wounded. About 100 Taliban were killed.
Despite the heavy U.S. death toll, Myer was awarded the Silver Star for calling in aircraft to beat back the fighters, some of whom had breached the base walls, according to U.S. military officials in Afghanistan.
After the attack, the U.S. military scrutinized how enemy forces were allowed to get as close to the base as they did. Officials familiar with the after-action review said Taliban fighters got within grenade-throwing distance of U.S. troops.
Myer even called in close air support to hit enemy targets just 10 meters from his own position, according to officials familiar with the after-action report.
Four-star Gen. Charles C. Campbell was chosen to review the final investigation and make disciplinary decisions. Campbell decided Myer would receive a career-ending letter of reprimand for failing to prepare the base's defenses sufficiently against an enemy attack.
(Excerpt) Read more at edition.cnn.com ...
I want you to command a base in a valley surrounded by steep terrain. Then after I deny you air and artillery support for several hours when you are attacked, I am going to blame you for the casualties.
What has happened to CPT Myer must be simply fantastic for morale these days.
That about sums it up. If I remember correctly, that was an old Russian base camp. Their rules of engagement (if they had any) were probably not quite so restrictive as the ones our guys have.
The other officers that got letters were in a command element (not at the battle) and initially refused and then badly coordinated air support. It also sounded like the people that were supposed to be in charge of the command element weren’t physically present in the command center.
Let me get this straight: he was a dumbass, but a brave dumbass.
Artillery was most likely out of range anyway. They had air support after the first hour, which is likely due to the long distances to traverse. Terrain is certainly not ideal, but we have all kinds of toys that can be used to catch people sneaking up on you a long way off. Something about this whole thing doesn’t smell right.
No, he was ordered to defend the bottom of an isolated punch bowl with little ammo, few supplies, no air support, and no reinforcements.
Breaker Morant?
Regarding COP Kahler, poor terrain, poor force protection, poor intelligence and a delay of almost 12 months (allowing the Taliban to do their own intelligence work and mass forces) again points to horrible errors in judgment. But the idea of using smaller, less defended Combat Outposts to put Soldiers and Marines more in touch with the population comes from counterinsurgency doctrine, and it is here that the failure is occurring.
In my interpretation, we put more emphasis on making friends with the locals and not enough on security. We mustn’t offend or frighten the locals by using too many soldiers or giving them too much equipment.
“Touchy feely” doesn’t work in the real world. First should come security, then hearts and minds.
The Navy once taught me there is a difference between being correct/incorrect and right/wrong.
The day I learned that, I happened to be both incorrect and wrong.
More like he was given the dirty end of the stick and used it to defend himself then someone tried to cover their rear for giving him the stick to begin with.
Did Gen. Wesley Clark receive a reprimand for almost starting WWIII with Ivan at that airport in Serbia back in 1993?
Just wondering...
5.56mm
“In the end nine soldiers were killed and 12 were wounded. About 100 Taliban were killed.
Despite the heavy U.S. death toll, “
CNN apparently has no idea what war is like. What they are describing is no Okinawa or Iwo Jima.
This guy sounds like he did what he had to do when placed in an untenable spot by higher-ups. And yet he gets a career-ending reprimand?
I don’t believe this is the same battle.
Something tells me there is more to the story that they’re not telling us.
You are correct. I got it confused with another similar screw up.
That's almost certainly the case here, and without knowing all the facts it's pretty hard to comment on this incident in specific; however, I can easily see how, hypothetically speaking, a commander could fail to comply with doctrine, regulation or even direct orders in securing his encampment, yet distinguish himself heroically once that encampment come under assault. The two are not mutually exclusive.
Even as they settled into their spartan command post, the unit’s commanders were insulted to learn that local leaders were meeting together in a “shura,” or council, to which they were not invited — and which might even have been a session used to coordinate the assault on the Americans that began before dawn the very next morning.
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