The FReeper Foxhole Revisits Captain Ken Pope - Liberation of Kuwait (2/27/91) - February 25th, 2005

Army History ^ | Kevin Hymel

[snippy_about_it]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
.

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for all those serving their country at this time.


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The FReeper Foxhole Revisits

Battle on the Basra Road

When CPT Ken Pope led his troop of M1A1 Abrams tanks and M3A2 Bradley Cavalry Fighting Vehicles over a ridge west of the Basra Road on 27 February 1991, he was surprised to find over a dozen Iraqi tanks, armored personnel carriers, and assorted wheeled vehicles with supporting infantry strung out less than 1,000 meters to his front. But the Iraqis were even more surprised. Pope recalled that several Iraqis “were standing outside their vehicles” and added that “it looked like they had stopped for a quick maintenance halt.” It was the fourth day of the U.S. Army’s ground attack against Iraq, and Pope was about to begin his last battle of the Persian Gulf War.

The war resulted from Saddam Hussein’s sudden invasion of its Arab neighbor Kuwait on 2 August 1990. In response to Saddam’s blatant act of aggression, President George Bush ordered U.S. troops, aircraft, and warships to Saudi Arabia to thwart a possible invasion of that country by Iraqi forces. Five days after the invasion, the first U.S. soldiers, a brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division, flew out of Charleston AFB, SC, bound for Saudi Arabia. In time, the entire XVIII Airborne Corps, consisting of four divisions and other units, would be in Saudi Arabia, ready to defend that nation from attack.

By October, General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, commander of the U.S. Central Command and all Allied forces in Saudi Arabia, had enough troops to maintain a solid defense of Saudi Arabia. Schwarzkopf, however, soon realized that he needed more forces if the Allied coalition decided to drive the Iraqis from Kuwait. By 15 October, Schwarzkopf and his staff began formulating plans for a two corps attack. Less than a month later, President Bush announced the deployment of the U.S. Army’s VII Corps to Saudi Arabia.

By the time Desert Shield became Desert Storm, the U.S. Army had seven divisions, two armored cavalry regiments, and hundreds of other combat and support units in Saudi Arabia. In addition to the Army forces sent to Saudi Arabia, the U.S. Navy deployed six carrier battle groups with several hundred aircraft. The U.S. Air Force sent over 1,000 fighter, bomber, tanker, and transport aircraft. In all, Schwarzkopf commanded fifteen divisions, including the 1st and 2nd Marine Divisions and several Allied coalition divisions.

The powerful VII Corps was comprised of several heavy armor units, including the 1st and 3rd Armored Divisions, 1st Cavalry Division, 1st Infantry Division (the famed “Big Red One”), 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, and the British 1st Armored Division. VII Corps’ objective, once the ground war commenced, was to drive north 100 miles into Iraq and then wheel right and drive east, cutting off the Basra Road, the main route leading north from Kuwait City to Basra, Iraq, and the most likely escape route for fleeing Iraqi armor.

The XVIII Airborne Corps, on the left flank of VII Corps, would also drive north, pivot east farther north of VII Corps, and destroy what was left of the Iraqi ground forces.



As the build up of forces for Desert Shield steadily increased, MG Thomas G. Rhame prepared his 1st Infantry Division for war at Fort Riley, KS. During training, Rhame quickly realized that his cavalry squadrons were understrength and would be unable to effectively deal with Iraqi armored and mechanized forces. As a result, Rhame ordered that more armor be added to his cavalry squadrons. LTC Robert Wilson’s 1/4 Cavalry, of which CPT Pope’s Alpha Troop was a part, received M1A1 tanks while in Kansas and M3A2 Bradleys after the unit arrived in Saudi Arabia. Pope remembered the situation well: “We had formed the troop from scratch at Fort Riley six weeks prior. We were still putting personnel into the vehicles as we began the ground war.”

Alpha Troop was one of four that made up 1/4 Cavalry. Pope commanded two platoons of six Bradleys each and one platoon of two Bradleys and three M1A1s.

The U.S. Army’s doctrine for combat, better known as Air-Land Battle, called for speed and firepower coordinated with artillery and close air support. The weaponry of Pope’s Alpha Troop, along with most of the U.S. Army’s forces in Saudi Arabia, reflected this doctrine.



The M1 Abrams main battle tank and M2/3 Bradley fighting vehicles were the pride of the U.S. armored forces. First introduced to the Army in 1980, the Abrams received numerous upgrades to its weapons, armor, and electronics to ensure its superiority over Soviet armor. The A1 model included a 120mm smoothbore cannon, which replaced the original 105mm main gun, and additional armor added to the front. Another addition to the M1A1 was a new overpressure system that constantly blew air out of hatches and other openings in the tank to prevent contaminants from entering. This overpressure system was considered extremely important for the forces deployed to Saudi Arabia, since they faced an enemy that had employed chemical weapons in its war against Iran and against rebellious Kurds within its own borders. The Abrams had a crew of four: three men, the tank commander, gunner, and loader, in the turret, and one, the driver, in a compartment in the front of the tank.

The M2/3 Bradley was a companion to the Abrams. The M2 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) was a troop carrying version and was developed to replace the Vietnam War-era M113 APCs, which were considered too slow and too poorly armed and armored to accompany tanks directly into battle. The M3 Cavalry Fighting Vehicle (CFV) used the same chassis as the M2, but was designed as a scout/cavalry vehicle. Both carried a crew of three (commander, driver, gunner), but instead of carrying six dismounts like the M2, the M3 carried two scouts in the rear compartment, whose jobs were, explained Pope, “to dismount the Bradley in any action, check trenches or obstacles, and provide local security for the vehicles.” Both the M2 and M3 were armed with a twin tube TOW missile launcher, 25mm Bushmaster cannon that fired armor piercing and high explosive rounds, and a coaxial 7.62mm machine gun. In addition, the Bradley was also equipped with night vision sights that gave the Bradley a distinct advantage over similar Iraqi vehicles.



It was this mixed force of Bradleys and M1A1s that Pope eventually commanded in training and battle through three countries in the Middle East. On 17 January 1991, as the Allied air forces began their attacks on Iraq and enemy forces entrenched in Kuwait, Pope intensified his troop’s training. When the Allies launched the ground campaign on 24 February, he led his men through the Saddam line, Iraq’s initial defense line comprised of trenches, minefields, and other obstacles.

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[SAMWolf]

Morning Mayor.

I always hated the "time out" method of discipline. IMHO, it doesn't work.

[E.G.C.]

Good morning, folks.

It went down into the 30's last night. Took a few minutes to get the car warmed up.

How's it going, Snippy?

[tomball]

Excellent message today, Mayor.

[SAMWolf]

1831 Polish army halted the Russian advance into their country at the Battle of Grochow

The first months after the outbreak of the November Uprising saw no hostilities between Poland and Russia. Both the Polish commander Jozef Chlopicki and Russian tsar Nicholas I were hoping for a peaceful solution to the conflict. However, none of the sides could propose a satisfactory compromise and in on January 25, 1831, Nicholas was deposed of the Polish throne.

This was seen as a de facto declaration of war and the Russian Army under Ivan Dybich was ordered to enter Poland and crush the rebellion. The Russian army entered Poland on February 4 and started a fast advance towards Warsaw. Despite several minor battles and skirmishes, in which the Russian army suffered significant losses, the advance could not be stopped by the Polish forces, both numerically and technically inferior.

On February 24 the Russian Army reached the outskirts of Warsaw in two columns. Initially Dybich was planning an all-out assault on Warsaw on February 26. However, the successful Polish counter-attack in the Battle of Bialoleka, in which the 13 500 men strong Corps of General Ivan Shakhovskiy was defeated and forced to retreat, made Dybich change his plans and attack earlier than planned.

Opposing forces

The Polish forces dislocated to the east of Warsaw constituted the majority of Polish Army. Apart from the II Infantry Brigade under General Kazimierz Malachowski, dispatched to the north to take part in the Battle of Bialoleka, the forces of General Jozef Chlopicki included some 36 000 soldiers and 115 cannons of various calibres. Large part of the Polish forces was composed of fresh, poorly trained and ill-equipped volunteers. However, the core of the Polish Army was composed of Napoleonic Wars veterans.

The Russian forces had some 59 000 men at arms and 178 cannons. In addition, at 15.00 the weakened corps of General Shakhovskiy arrived to the battlefield and took part in the assault. The forces of Field Marshal Ivan Dybich were organised into 5 Infantry Corps, with some cavalry units attached to them. However, the main part of the Russian cavalry was defeated in the Battle of Stoczek and did not enter the combat.

Battle

The Polish counter-attack in the area of Bia³o³êka on February 24 surprised the Russians. In the early morning of February 25, after both units taking part in the Battle of Bialolêka were on the verge of breaking after a night-long city fight, the Poles threw in the reserve 1st Infantry Division under General Jan Krukowiecki. The Russians started a retreat and the Poles started a pursuit, but the Polish advance was halted after an hour.

The sound of the nearby battle made Field Marshal Dybich change his plans and order an assault on Polish positions 24 hours earlier than planned. At noon the I Corps and the Corps of General Grigoriy Vladimirovich Rosen were ordered to assault the Polish 2nd and 3rd Infantry Divisions (Generals Skrzynecki and Zymirski, respectively) in the woods east of Pahlen was ordered to outflank the Poles from the south and strike through the lines of the Polish 4th Infantry Division of General Szembek.

Although the Russians had numerical superiority and better equipment on their side, the Polish lines were well-hidden in the woods and the Russian artillery had difficulties helping the advancing infantry. Despite numerous assaults, both the woods and the Goclawek road was still in Polish hands by dusk. After suffering heavy casualties, the Russians withdrew from the battlefield. However, the Poles also lost large part of their forces and were unable to organise a successful pursuit.

After the battle

The battle was not concluded. However, the Poles finally managed to stop the Russian advance and prevented Dybich's forces from capturing Warsaw. This however was a pyrrhic victory. The Russian army lost at least 9 500 killed and wounded. Polish losses were slightly smaller, but also significant: between 6 900 and 7 300 dead and wounded.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning PE.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Tomball.

[tomball]

Good Morning, Foxhole. Another excellent thread for another great day. I remember when the war broke out, CNN was actually reporting the news. My boss had CNN Headline News hooked up to our telephone line so when customers called in and had to be put on hold, they would hear the latest on what was going on with the War. There were times when he would connect with the customer only to have them tell him to put them back on hold for "just another minute" to hear what was going on.

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning everyone!

[snippy_about_it]

Thanks for finding this story Iris7.

[Wneighbor]

Morning P.E. & msdrby!

Say, does anybody here know any FReepers from the Huntsville Alabama area? :-)

Since I'm looking at maybe moving there, I might like to talk to some folks from there. :-)

[Aeronaut]

Hi Sam.

[SAMWolf]

Hi Feather.

[GailA]

It wasn't raining, there was only light frost, and the temps are going to be mid-50s today so yes, its a good moring for Memphis.

[Professional Engineer]

Say, does anybody here know any FReepers from the Huntsville Alabama area? :-)

I think CholeraJoe hails from Alabama originally, but I'm not sure where.

[CholeraJoe]

I'm from Selma originally, but haven't been there since the 1970's.

[Grzegorz 246]

[Grzegorz 246]

[Grzegorz 246]

Look at Putin.

[colorado tanker]

LOL! Pooty-poot looks like he was taken out to the woodshed and had his bottom spanked.

[colorado tanker]

"Time out" works for us. The trick is you have to spank them the first couple of times when they try to break the rules so they know you mean business about sitting in the room alone and quiet.