Unfortunate friendly fire incidents raised concern amongst Army leadership. Almost all but 200 members of Iraq’s 110 th Infantry Brigade surrendered when their position was overrun by US armour. Small groups of the enemy were encountered and destroyed, and prisoners were captured from overrun outposts. Īt 2:30 pm on 24 February, VII Corps started its drive to the Euphrates. Initial Coalition movements, G-day, 24 February. Operation Desert Storm: The 100 hour ground campaign. A US Army heavy brigade was a formidable force, containing up to 3 battalions of M1A2 tanks (116 total) and another battalion of 54 Bradleys plus scout, mortar, air-defence and support vehicles: formed into a 22,000 soldier division, the unit covered a frontage of 25-45 kilometers, with a depth of 80-150 kilometers. The Coalition’s Third Army, to which VII Corps was attached, had published its programme of operations on 5 January: Operation Plan 001 which called for Corps to, “Conduct main attack in zone to penetrate Iraqi defenses and destroy RGFC … in zone.” XVIII Airborne Corps would cover the 260 kilometers to the Euphrates, and VII Corps, with the heaviest concentration of armour, would move on Al Basrah where Iraq’s Republican Guard was deployed. The division had been moved to the west of the Iraq Petroleum Saudi Arabia (IPSA) pipeline, roughly 80 miles west of Kuwait City. The Tawakalna Division, the main antagonist of VII Corps on February 26 th, was composed of 220 T-72s and 278 Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs), and was commanded by Major General Salah Aboud Mahmoud. By 1990 the Republican Guard comprised 3 armoured divisions and 5 infantry divisions. The Republican Guard had been formed in the 1970s and expanded during the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-8 with the recruitment of college educated soldiers. The Iraqi Army deployed 26 divisions of conscripts along its Saddam Line, and supported these with 9 mechanized divisions, with the 8 Republican Guard divisions acting as a mobile reserve. This post looks at the tactical movements during the opening phase of battle through a narrative, and the conclusion addresses the historiographical question of the tactical lessons of the battle.ĭisposition of Iraq’s Army at the beginning of the ground war, 24 February 1991. The Battle of 73 Easting was the first salvo in the last major tank battle of the Cold War, indeed, what turned out to be the largest tank battle since the Battle of Kursk in July 1943. The one-sided nature of the engagement has unsettled analysts and military historians alike as to the deceptive role played by any one of these elements. The battle has generated significant interest amongst scholars and soldiers alike as a case study for the influence of technology and training on operations and tactics, including the role of air power and close air support prior to land operations, the significance of weather and environmental friction, and the importance of battlefield intelligence and robust command and control to prevent blue-on-blue actions. Īlthough the battle that started at 73 Easting continued on the 27 th and engulfed components from the Republican Guard Medina, Adnan and Hammurabi Divisions, and the remainder of the 12 th Armored Division, this post examines primarily the tactical and operational circumstances of the Battle at 73 Easting between VII Corps and the Tawakalna Division on 26 th February. The ground phase of the campaign commenced on the 24 th, with the advance of VII (armour) and XVIII (airborne) Corps through the desert, combined with Joint Forces Command-North & East, and Marine Forces Central Command, operations to secure Kuwait and Kuwait City. When President Bush’s ultimatum of February 23 rd expired, the Coalition launched its massive offensive, with the expectation of a confrontation with Iraq’s Republican Guard shortly to follow. The major actions occurred on the afternoon, and evening of 26 th February, 1991, around the 73 rd easting grid coordinate, near Objective Norfolk west of the Kuwait-Iraq border. M-1A1 Abrams main battle tanks of the 3rd Armored Division move out on a mission during Operation Desert Storm.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |