Another SEAL mission in Grenada was an assault on the Governor-General Paul Scoon's mansion in the St. George area. APC's. The Governor-General was never in dire danger, and the SEALs sustained only one wounded in this action, which led to numerous PRA casualties and WIA. The SEALs were relieved on 26 October by Marines from the 22nd Marine Amphibious Unit embarked on-board the USS Guam.
Analysis: The SEAL Team SIX men arrived in two UH-1 Blackhawk Helos at approximately 0615, an hour and fifteen minutes behind schedule due to the delays imposed by the shifting H-hour. The Blackhawk's came under heavy AA fire as they tried to locate the correct HLZ's. The lead Blackhawk was hit, with the pilot wounded and one SEAL wounded. They dropped their cargo and quickly exited the area. The follow on bird was fired upon but not damaged, and they inserted their payload of SEALs without incident. The SEALs performed a flawless fast rope insertion in eleven man elements from the helos and immediately formed up to assault the Government House where Governor-General Scoon was believed to be held. They met no resistance from the guards or police force, as all had fled upon insertion of the SEALs. They secured the Government House by 0630 on 25 October.
After positively identifying Governor-General Scoon, they bundled him into a locked closet for his own safety. The SEALs then set up firing positions with interlock fields of fire, and the SEAL sniper took position in the upstairs windows. As the PRA began their counterattack, the sniper, using a G3 SG-1 sniper rifle, single-handedly dispatched over twenty one PRA soldiers, making him an instrumental player in the defense of the mansion. The PRA counterattack included a BTR-60 armored personnel carrier and an unknown number of soldiers. They attempted to assault through the eastern gates, but were repulsed by the SEALs with their well aimed fire. They settled for a long stand-off instead. It is reputed that the SEAL team lost it's primary radio to enemy fire upon insert, so were not able to communicate with the command staff on the USS Guam. At one point they utilized the telephone inside the mansion to place a call back to Fort Bragg, NC, asking the Watch Officer to contact the USS Guam and request fire support. I'm not sure of the veracity of this account, and will have to ask some of the operators who were there to verify it. In any event, Adm Metcalf felt the situation serious enough to send two USMC AH-1 Cobra gunships to the mansion to provide fire support. The first Cobra, piloted by Marine Cpt. Tim Howard, was crippled and crash landed in a soccer field.
A team of twenty two SEALs from SEAL Team SIX were tasked to perform this mission on the morning of 25 October, 1983. Governor-General Paul Scoon was being held under house arrest at his mansion on the outskirts of St. Georges. He was considered to be the legitimate governmental authority on Grenada by the US , so his "rescue" was given as high a priority as the rescue of US citizens on the Island. Additionally, US Brigadier General Lewis had in his possession a letter addressed by Governor-General-General Scoon, back dated to the 24th, requesting US intervention to protect it's citizens and to restore law and order. If the Governor -General were not rescued, the political premise for our being there would fizzle. The original plan had the SEALs insert and extract at night using the same air assets, however, the same delays that pushed back the rest of the Special Operations missions pushed this op back to about 0600 on the 25th of October.
MISSION: To infiltrate the Governor-General's Mansion compound by helo NLT 0500 25 October, 1983. Perform Direct Action assault to gain control of the compound and to secure the safe conduct of Governor-General Paul Scoon and his family off of Grenada and into friendly forces protection.
FORCES:
FRIENDLY: SEAL Team SIX, USA Task Force 160 Blackhawks. USAF AC- 130 gunship (?), USMC AH-1T Cobra helicopter gunships. A-7's; USS Independence.
ENEMY: 1,200 to 1,500 PRA (Army) and 2,000 to 5,000 PRM (Militia), six to twelve Armored Personnel Carriers (APC) and four to six ZU-23 AA guns known to be on the island. A small guard force was also known to exist at the compound, but they were not considered a serious threat. Reactionary force actions and times were still unknown.
TARGET:
The Governor-General's mansion and Government House are located on the western side of Grenada in the St. George region. It sits squarely in the JTF 123 AO, and occupies a small hill surrounded by open lawn. This gave the SEAL element a tactical advantage in the likely event of a counter-attack by PRA forces. The target is composed of a series of buildings, the largest being the Government house with several outbuildings, then Coard's and Bishop's houses to the east. A tennis court was due east of the Government house. Upon insertion, it was quickly noted that there was an AA gun emplacement in the woods next to the tennis court, and another near Bishop's residence. The road leading to the Governor's mansion was gated at both ends.
CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS: The SEAL Team SIX element is tasked to perform a pre-dawn fast rope insertion by UH-60 Blackhawks from TF-160 to two HLZ's near the target, one on the tennis court and the other on the lawn in front of the Government house. The SEALs are to perform a direct action raid on the Governor's Mansion. They are to take control of the target and protect Governor-General Scoon and his family from harm. They are tasked to remove the Governor-General from the site by helicopter. If the primary extraction is not feasible, they are to protect the Governor-General inside the mansion and await the arrival of friendly troops.
POST OPERATION REPORT:
Mission Results: Objectives met, Primary mission of gaining control of the Government house and protecting the Governor-General met. Heavy AA fire upon insert disabled the Helo assets and prevented the primary extraction from occurring. As a result, the SEALs held their position in the Government house for nearly 24 hours while under assault by PRA troops and Ard was critically wounded. His co-pilot, Cpt Jeb Seagle managed to drag Tim from the burning copter. However, while he was signaling the other Cobra for medivac, he was cut down by enemy fire. The second Cobra was shot down while it was giving covering fire for the Medivac helo rescuing Cpt Howard. They crashed into the harbor with 100% casualties. Cpt Howard was rescued by the Medivac and eventually recovered. The three Marine pilots who lost their lives during this operations were the only Marine fatalities during Operation Urgent Fury. After the Cobras were shot down, the PRA commander ordered a second assault on the Governor's mansion. Within moments, an AC-130 Spectre gunship arrived on-scene, diverted from the Salinas airfield. The Spectre quickly dispatched the APC and scattered the troops again. The AC-130 remained on station for the remainder of the day. Adm. Metcalf also ordered an air strike using A-7's from the USS independence. The A-7's destroyed the AA emplacements that shot down the Cobras and wounded the Blackhawks. The PRA backed off again and continued to send sporadic fire toward the mansion. The SEAL element felt that their position was safest inside the mansion, so they holed up until relieved by the Marines on the 26th of October, a full 24 hours after the initial insertion. The SEAL Team SIX men had only a few rounds of ammunition left when they were relieved by the Marines.
NOTE: This mission is often given a bad rap for the lack of communication and the SEALs using the telephone to call air support from Fort Bragg. What it was, though, was a poorly conceived operation (senior, non-special operation's types planned most of these goat-ropes) conducted during daylight with inadequate intelligence on the enemy forces. The SEALs, given what they knew and the assets at their disposal, performed brilliantly and with valor. The communications by land-line showed the ingenuity and flexibility of the SEALs, and their ingrained training to do whatever the heck it takes to get the job done - even if it means unusual or unconventional tactics or actions. These men were phenomenally successful at fighting off a far larger and better armed force using only their personal issue weapons. SEALs are not designed to fight sustained battles. Get in, get out quickly without alerting anyone and get out of dodge. That is the modus operand of the SEALs. However, most senior commanders are ill advised or unknowing of the capabilities, strengths and weaknesses of the SEALs, so often mis-use them in a combat role, such as the Grenada invasion ops. The Governor-General operation is a classic SEAL operations, but only if performed under the cover of darkness with not even the slightest hint of compromise. Neither of these was true during Operation Just Cause. The result was another three US deaths and two wounded.
Enemy KIA/WIA: 30+/unk
Friendly KIA/WIA: 3 USMC/1 SEAL, 1 USArmy
Lessons Learned:
1. Have fire support available on every operation.
2. Bring at least one weapon capable of knocking out an armored vehicle (.50 cal sniper, AT-4, stinger etc).
3. Never fight fair. Use whatever means necessary to get the job done.
4. Never underestimate the enemy, no matter how un-trained or disorganized they are reported to be (this lesson was not carried into Panama, where we had to re-learn it. We finally learned it in the Gulf War, but the enemy truly turned out to be weak and ineffective in that conflict).
5. Expect the worse and prepare for it.
6. Don't forget to bring a credit card and money on the operation!
7. A good sniper is worth his weight in gold.
8. A man is no match against armor.
9. Do not perform commando operations during daylight hours if at all possible.
10. Over-reaction often can lead to problems.
11. It is nice to have a kevlar helmet to sit on while inserting.
12. Conserve your rounds - you may need them.
13. Politically motivated missions usually suck.
