After my honorable discharge from the USMC in August 1991, I enlisted in the Florida Army National Guard as an Infantry Sergeant with C Company, 3rd Battalion, 53rd Infantry, Florida Army National Guard. In August 1992 I enrolled in the Army ROTC at the Florida State University (FSU). At FSU I was enrolled in the Simoultaneaous Membership Program (SMP), acting as a Cadet with A Company, 3rd Battalion while a student at Florida State.
I began my Army career in the Infantry. While a Company Commander, I had 17 years towards retirement and I began to think about what I would do for a living after I retired. Subsequently I requested to change my job to that of a Network Management Officer, 53A. Immediately after company command I went to Fort Gordon for training. Since there is no "Network" branch, I keep my infantry crossed rifles.
The rest of my Army career is here on this page.
Operation Desert Strike (Iraq)
From Month/Year
September / 1996
To Month/Year
September / 1996
Description The 1996 cruise missile strikes on Iraq, codenamed Operation Desert Strike, were joint United States Navy-Air Force strikes conducted on 3 September against air defense targets in southern Iraq, in response to an Iraqi offensive in the Kurdish Civil War.
The cruise missile strikes was initially planned to be by aircraft launched from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70), including aircraft from Fighter Squadron 11 (VF-11) and Fighter Squadron 31 (VF-31), both operating F-14D Tomcats, Electronic Attack Squadron 139 (VAQ-139), operating EA-6B Prowlers, Attack Squadron 196 (VA-196), operating A-6E Intruders equipped with the Target Recognition and Attack Multi-Sensor (TRAM) system, Anti-Submarine Squadron 35 (VS-35) flying S-3B Vikings and Strike Fighter Squadron 113 (VFA-113) and Strike Fighter Squadron 25 (VFA-25), both operating F/A-18 Hornets. However, the strike instead was launched by U.S. Navy surface warships and U.S. Air Force bombers.
On 3 September 1996, a joint operation by the U.S. Navy's Carl Vinson Carrier Battle Group and U.S. Air Force, a combined strike team consisting of the guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh (CG-67), the guided-missile destroyer USS Laboon (DDG-58), and B-52 Stratofortress bombers escorted by F-14D Tomcat fighters from Carl Vinson, with the nuclear-powered guided-missile cruiser USS California (CGN-36) serving as Air Warfare Commander, launched 27 cruise missiles against Iraqi air defense targets in southern Iraq. A second wave of 17 missiles was launched later that day from the destroyers USS Russell (DDG-59), USS Hewitt (DD-966), USS Laboon (DDG-58), and the nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Jefferson City (SSN-759). The missiles hit targets in and around Kut, Iskandariyah, Nasiriyah, and Tallil.
My Participation in This Battle or Operation
From Month/Year
September / 1996
To Month/Year
September / 1996
Last Updated: Mar 16, 2020
Personal Memories
People You Remember Brigade Commander COL Eric T Olsen Battalion Commander LTC Chris Ellis Company Commander CPT Sean Jenkins My Buddies, 2LT Joaquin Croslin, Infantry Platoon Leader, 2LT Art Yarbrough, Medical Platoon Leader, and 1LT Rex Boone, Scout Platoon Leader.
Memories This began as a four-month exercise, I think it was called Intrinsic Action. We flew to Kuwait on chartered 747s, stopping in Paris, France for 4 hours enroute. We stopped on the runway to refuel, and the door of the airplane was opened, but we were not allowed off of the plane. I remember the smokers were pleading for a chance to go on to the runway.
The plane was a comfortable 77-78 degrees. When they opened the door in Kuwait, we felt as if someone opened a furnace door as we were blasted with the heat of the desert. It was well over 100 degrees. We made for busses and asked the driver to turn on the AC, and he replied that the AC was on and working, set for 90 degrees!!!
We made our way to the desert, and built up camps near the Udari Range. On the way we passed a vehicle graveyard of Iraqi tanks, trucks and assorted vehicles that were destroyed during the Gulf War. We couldn't stop at the time, although I had a chance later to go look at the vehicles. Some of the vehicles had personal items from Iraqi soldiers in them. One of my Soldiers brought me an Iraqi gas mask and several found Iraqi helmets. I don't know what happened to those items.
Very quickly we had bull dozers building up dirt walls around our encampment. We went as a Battalion Combat Team initially, with two Tank Companies and two Mechanized Infantry Companies. Each Company had their own "kabal", with a kabal for the Battalion Headquarters, and another for the Medical folks and one for the Specialty Platoons.
I was the Commander for the Specialty Platoon kabal. I was the Mortar Platoon Leader, we had the Anti-Tank Platoon, an attached MP Platoon, and a fourth platoon.
We were given plywood to improve our living conditions. We put floors down in the platoon tents. We also had a semi-professional carpenter who built us a pretty good gym and a sandbag filling machine. He left the Army shortly after and became a full time carpenter.
We filled thousands of sandbags. The temperature reached 140 degrees for more than 40 days. At breakfast we would get apples and loafs of bread with our meal. The bread was ALWAYS toasted by the time we received it, and by afternoon the apples were baked.
We had orders to stay out of the sun from 1000 - 1500. It was too hot to nap, so we played a LOT of spades. We woke up at 0300 for PT. In the moonlight we could see the huge Black armored scorpions walking through the formation.
There were many smaller, almost translucent scorpions too. They were everywhere. One crawled up the side of the tent and fell onto one of my soldiers, stinging him on the finger as he flailed around trying to get it off.
We were able to fire without much oversight for training on the range. Our platoon fired over 900 rounds, which is significant since the standard for our size mortars at the time was about 300 rounds a year.
There were rusted hulks of tanks and vehicles on the range left over from the Gulf War and we would drive around the range and stop and shoot at them. Once, just as a round exploded, some vehicles drove past the explosion from on the range itself. Apparently hunters would drive around the range.
One day a couple of Arabs came to our kabal and asked to see me. They claimed our mortars killed 4 of their camels, using gestures to communicate. One of my men gave them cigarettes and said we were even. They were camel cigarettes. I called the Battalion Commander and he asked me to wait, and that they were sending someone to del with this situation. In the desert we could see every mortar round hit, and we were never near any camels, so I wasn't worried. I gave them some MREs and water, which they accepted quickly but didn't eat. AFTER I gave them the MREs, I realized there was pork in those packages I gave them. I tried everything to get the MREs back, but we had no Arabic speakers with us, and they spoke no English. I gave up eventually, and they left before anyone came, so I don't know if they wound up eating the pork or not.
We did see some packs of camels, but not near the range. These camels stunk, their tails caked with dung. Camels are foul, ugly creatures with bad temperament, if they weren't so handy in the desert I don't think anyone would keep them around.
Another time, Air Force A-10s were training in the same area of the range we were using. I arranged some joint training with the AF Observers, with the Tank Killers hitting the targets just after our rounds. Great Training.
At some point the deployment became operational. The Iraqi dictator shot some missiles at our patrolling planes, and we (The United States) began returning our own missile fire. At that point the rest of the Brigade (3rd Brigade 1st Cavalry Division) joined our Battalion and all of our resources were controlled by Brigade HQ and we were given 1/3 of what we had before in terms of support.
While the Brigade was there we set up a 9mm pistol range and M16 range. We put targets up and laid down sand bags. At one point Soldiers left their rifles and began running from the range. A Cobra had stood its head up and flattened it from behind some sand bags, hissing at the Soldier. A Scout Platoon Staff Sergeant took his 9mm and shot the snake, using 9 rounds before he hit it.
The flies in the Kuwait desert are numerous, and they flew around us ALL the time. We learned to eat while simultaneously swat the flies. We sent video tapes back, and the families all remarked that we were all flailing our hands and arms around as we spoke. At that point we didn't even notice.
The Secretary of the Army at the time, Mr. Togo West, came to visit our Battalion Combat Team. He came to the range to watch us train our Mortars. At the time I truly believed we were the BEST trained Mortar Platoon in the Army. As Togo West watched, we shot at and hit an old armored vehicle 1500 meters away. Togo West presented me with a coin that I still have today.
At one point, just before or just as the Brigade was joining us, our Battalion went on maneuvers. We lined up in a huge formation along the Iraqi border, which was delineated by the large sign posts stating that the UN was responsible for patrolling the area. Several times we charged at the border, and then at one point we crossed into Iraq. More accurately, probably, is that we charged several kilometers into the 10 km wide border area. Later that evening the Battalion Commander remarked that he received a phone call from somewhere high up, that we were watched by satellites, and we will not be doing such a thing again. LTC Ellis retired after giving up command when we returned.
We arrived in the Kuwaiti desert in July, I think, or August. It was VERY hot then, but one night in October the evening was so cold I couldn't sleep. I was stuffed in a sleeping bag, with a poncho liner blanket and field jacket and it was too cold to sleep. The S2 told us that night the temperature dropped from 140 degrees to 90. If you would have asked me that night, I would have told you it was 10 at the most.
After the Brigade arrived we were given a couple of days rest back at Camp Doha. It was at that time that I realized how hot it had become and how much I had acclimated. There were air-conditioned buildings that were cooled to 90 degrees, and it felt great! They were spoiled by our standards at Camp Doha.
At the Kabal we had "piss tubes" that the engineers placed into the sand and rocks, and open portajohns with 50 gallon barrels under them, cut in half. We had to burn these everyday. We didn't have showers for the first few weeks, but then we had these outdoor showers that some water tanker would fill with water everyday.
Camp Doha had A/C, a burger joint, showers with hot/cold running water, a PX, a chow hall. It was an oasis. There was some palace there with a swimming pool, but that was off limits to the infantry. Our time there was very short, though. Art had a friend stationed there, who took us out in town. We were able to go up the Kuwaiti Towers and shop at the Gold Markets. We had a VERY nice buffet lunch, top quality, at the hotel that Art's friend was staying at.
On our very last night at the kabal we tore up the wood floors and had a great bonfire in our kabal. The Battalion S3 called us on the radio and chewed my butt because apparently there was another unit coming in and they were going to use the material. Under the flooring we found many many mouse nests. The mice had stolen small items and documents and lined their nests with them.
When we arrived back at Fort Hood, TX, the Division Commander, the division band was playing MG Leon LaPort met us at the plane and shook the hand of each one of us as we stepped off the plane, like we were heroes.
I remember that Fort Hood looked green, like a jungle to me as we returned. If you have ever been there, you know it is in the desert. Flushing toilets and drinking iced drinks felt like luxury.
We were given the Joint Meritorious Unit Commendation for Operation Desert Strike.