John Gale (pseudonym) said, I was facing forward when I felt this blow to my lower left back. Then an A-10 and Night Stalker MH-60 Direct Action Penetrator (DAP) Black Hawksshowed up and it was all over for the Iraqi attack. Each day the AQI attacks became worsemore sustained and deadly and indiscriminate; insurgents targeted both Marines and civilians. Russ was a very energetic man of immense courage and always sporting a positive attitude. The Many Faces of Napoleon Bonaparte -- What did the French Emperor Actually Look Like? Despite their gains, tragedy would continue to befall the battalion, including the loss of their operations officer, who was key to the Three Bs plan in a helicopter accident. 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. 2007, Drama/War, 1h 33m. 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. Platoon leaders furiously took notes as Doyle laid out the plan on his map, and the group surveyed the available imagery. 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. A Battle For Haditha Dam Aired on Jan 24, 2016 Iraq 2003: A group of U.S. Army Rangers fights to seize control of Haditha Dam - a strategically key location in Operation Iraqi Freedom - when. Iraq 2003: A group of U.S. Army Rangers fights to seize control of Haditha Dam a strategically key location in Operation Iraqi Freedom when they realize they are outnumbered by a strong Iraqi force. Located in northwestern Iraq, Haditha Dam was a strategic target for both sides. Best of all, reinforcements, initially in the form of a pair of M1A1 Abrams tanks, finally began to arrive. We really gauged the passing of time by the consumption of our ammunition.. Seeing that I had not been hurt, I got back onto my weapon and helped get us out of there. Local government began functioning again. Soon after the sniper had been taken care of, two more Rangers discovered three armed and dazed guards in an apparently unmanned shack. SPC Alan floored the gas pedal and drove out of the kill zone on four flat tires. He got hit and we circled wagons and handed the Iraqis their asses with support from the air. In fact, the Thirds time in Haditha would prove to be the single deadliest deployment for a Marine battalion since that of the October, 1983 Beirut barracks bombing that killed 220. 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. Stay up to date with what you want to know. The days seemed to pass very quickly. 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. 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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. Joyce Shannon, Neighbors seek to help soldier injured in combat in Iraq,. Rangers were alert and kept the car at gunpoint, as no Iraqis were to be trusted at this point in the battle. Finally, the Rangers demonstrated the value that a flexible, cohesive, and highly trained assault force can bring to the modern battlefield. 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. But the Iraqi forces at Haditha Dam were defeated by then. Eight US Marines faced charges in the deaths, but only one was convicted of a crime, that of negligent dereliction of duty.. 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. Platoon sergeant SFC James Lauder (pseudonym) led a squad to the south side of the road to clear buildings. You must become a subscriber or login to view or post comments on this article. 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. 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. There was no enemy activity to be sensed, none in the slightest. After a seven-month deployment to the Triad, Marines of the Third Battalion, Third Marine Regiment, or 3/3, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Norman Norm Cooling, began preparing to return to their home base at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. Mar 23. Their actions earned CSM Birch and SFC Duncan Silver Star commendations.11. U.S. Army photo. Men, women, and children walked the streets freely. Regrettably, another artillery round did explode, this time directly on a Ranger mortar position.17, SFC Lauder raced to the impact area with medics and his driver. Cowed by beheadings, rapes, murder and general intimidation, the locals of the area remained rarely emerged from hiding. John D. Gresham lives in Fairfax, Va. Your donations help keep MHN afloat. 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. 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. My chief fear was,am I gonna have the guts to go forward? A side effect of extended exposure to enemy fire, especially artillery and mortars, it has the ability to disable even the most hardened veterans. She didnt understand the instructions, so AQI set the bomb off remotely shortly after she rode by the Americans, killing her instantly. The Rangers were beginning to flag from the grueling work when they made an adrenaline-producing discovery.7, On the sixth floor, the Rangers found twenty-five startled civilian dam workers. The raid prevented a potential humanitarian and environmental disaster along the Euphrates River, and mitigated the risk to coalition forces rapidly advancing toward Baghdad. Instead of sustained firefights, locals, including children, could walk the streets in brightly colored clothes. Taking advantage of the bright daylight, he directed his platoons to concentrate on clearing areas skipped during the frenzy of the initial assault. Unfortunately, the mortars were replaced by 152 millimeter heavy artillery from the southwest. The next battalion to occupy the region, the First Battalion of the Third Marine Regiment, didnt suffer a single loss of life. During the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, most Coalition troops entered the country from the south. The Delta operators conducted reconnaissance of the dam before the main assault. On the fourth day of the battle, the Rangers suffered their first casualties in an attack that foreshadowed the coming insurgency. W hen militants in Iraq made their . 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? The 8km-long Haditha dam and its hydro-electrical facility, located to the north-west of Baghdad, supply 30% of Iraq's electricity. Hearing the attack on SPC Alan and CPL Gale to the south, SFC Lauder called his platoon leader for reinforcements. The Premier Online Military History Magazine. He is an author, researcher, game designer, photographer, 2023 Defense Media Network. The lead Rangers in Duncans element dismounted their vehicles near the western entrance of the dam, and paused to get their bearings. The bomb obliterated the attackers, and shattered every window in the dam complex. It was a barrage that would last almost 36 hours, and mixed with a steady stream of mortar shells, would strain the Rangers to the breaking point. This was unlike any missionwe'd been taught about in Ranger history. A combination of mortar and 152 millimeter artillery shells rained down on the concrete surface near the Ranger positions. A Battle For Haditha Dam January 23, 2016 42min TV-14 Subtitles Subtitles English [CC] Audio languages Audio languages English Iraq 2003: A group of U.S. Army Rangers fights to seize control of Haditha Dam a strategically key location in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Late on the April 1, Doyle was informed that the expected relief forces would be delayed, and he would have to hold until relieved. While clearly facing a tough job, Doyle was not without means to hold on. I just saw this movie and found it very moving. The Read allAn 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. Brad Thompson ordered the platoon to regroup before renewing the assault. Battle of Haditha Dam: Former Delta operator and Ranger Sergeant Major saves the day by George E. Hand IV Mar 13, 2020 Share This: You can read the previous part here. 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. "We had no warning we'd be facing such a fierce response from the Iraqis none whatsoever," retired Chief Warrant Officer 4 Greg Coker told Insider. Running into a strong Iraqi blocking force, Capt. 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. Four more AH-6 Gunships and two MH-6 scouts were coming in to relieve Chiefs team. With First Lieutenant (1LT) Graham White on point, the convoy headed northeast into the night, following a route designed to avoid enemy troop concentrations. 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