European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 16, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Tuesday october 16, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 3on the front line it s tense tedious but after 40 Days troops emerge desert Tough by Vince Crawley staff writer with the 24th inf div in saudi Arabia after a sometimes tense mostly tedious 40 Days on the american front capt. David c. Gallop was told to pull Back his cavalry troop. A the threat has been Cut Back but the threat is still there a Gallop said. A the Guy Saddam Hussein can flip his wig at any still Gallop said a i personally believe we defended saudi he commands troop a of the 24th inf dives 2nd so 4th Cav regt. His front line positions were taken Over by another armoured cavalry regiment. Gallop and the other officers in his regiment compare their tactical setup to that in Western Europe before the Berlin Wall fell. Yes they re outnumbered but the United states has been training to fight against a larger enemy for More than 40 years they say. To compensate a we Bank highly on the sophistication of our equipment and the Quality of our division staff officers visiting gallops tent said the 24th is dug in like a european based unit. Some troops Are held in rear areas but they can be moved Forward quickly to defensive positions. The idea is about the same As when a unit in Ger Many has an a a alerts and drives to its assigned spot in the Countryside. The 40 Days on the line made his men a desert Tough a Gallop said. The temperatures Arentt much below 80 degrees at night but troops actually zip themselves into sleeping bags now that they re accustomed to saudi Arabia. The regiment formed in 1855, tracked Geronimo in 1886. So say its leaders arid wasteland is nothing new. However the soldiers have trained More recently in the swamps around fort Stewart a. Troop a is following the same patterns of the . Fighting men in North Africa during world War ii Gallop said. A it takes three weeks to be effective in the desert sue weeks to be efficient a he said. Unlike Many other stateside units troop a More or less happens to be staffed with soldiers who be recently rotated from Germany. Thus few have experience at the National training Center in californians Mojave desert. A a that a Why its so hard on them a said staff sgt. John Smith 31, of Macon a. Morale could be worse he said. A give a Guy time to think about Home every now and then and hell keep the troop was the first 24th inf div unit on the . Front line. They Call themselves a night riders a and As soon As their vehicles were unloaded from ships they conveyed out into the desert to set up their fighting positions. They stayed there from the beginning of september. Soldiers called it a a show of Force a moving vehicles Back and Forth to make it appear that an entire division not just one lonely cavalry troop was on the line. They were later joined by the rest of the regiment. They weren to pulled Back until late last week when most of the 24th, plus its support was in place. A your Job is to basically be up front. That a the Bottom line a Gallop said. A find the enemy. Find his strengths and More importantly find his weaknesses. Verify what intelligence officers think is out there. Or not out the troop uses m-3 Bradley cavalry fighting vehicles with 25mm Bushmaster Chain guns. Gallop said that As far As he knows his troop would encounter mostly soviet built amp personnel carriers if he were to Start probing Forward for an iraqi division. Iraq might also be using some older american made equipment he said but that be As complicated As it sounds. The enemy would be the Guy driving Forward and shooting at you. A a in a rather see Mem at night personally a the Captain said. A the night gives us Gallop said that attacking Iraq would be a political not military decision. But a if that a what the world wants we re ready to do 646th can truly sing we Are family. What a up an aircraft handler takes a break sunday while leaning against an a-7 Corsair attack plane on the flight deck of the aircraft Carrier John f. Kennedy which is in the persian Gulf Region As part of operation desert shield. Kingwood . A it will be a family affair when the 646th quartermaster co Rolls out of town for the Middle East. A a we be got a brother sister team a Mother father and son a father and son two Brothers and a couple of sets of cousins a said it. Larry Sheetz commanding officer of the 124-member army Reserve unit. A when we say there a a family feeling within this unit we re not kidding a Sheetz said. A sometimes you have to watch what you say because someone a relative might the Kingwood based unit part of the 99th army Reserve come in Oakdale pa., is headed for fort Lee va., and several weeks of training before deployment in the persian Gulf As part of operation desert shield Sheetz said. The 646th helps distribute fuel for front line troops. A a we re like a floating Gas station a said Sheetz. A we can set up a pipeline and distribution system anywhere in the world we re told to staff sets. Walter and Rotha Hall and spec. 4 Jerry Hall the couples son will be among those boarding trucks and buses for the trip to Virginia. Jack Gordon a spokesman for the 99th, said the Halls Are unique among reservists nationally. A a in be never heard of another father Mother and son serving together in the same unit a Gordon said. Walter Hall an assistant platoon sergeant and Rotha Hall a tank farm supervisor joined the Reserve unit together 14 years ago. A i had just gotten out of the army and decided to join when we tried to buy a House a Walter Hall said. A we were in a Pinch and did no to have any Money so i said a in a going to join the a my wife said a if you re going in a going with you a and Here we Are a he said. As staff sergeants the Hals each Are paid $200 a month for attending monthly meetings and a two Weck training Camp. Jerry Hall 20, receives about $150 a month. A a it a been great a Walter Hall said. A a lot of people get lonely when they have to leave their families to go to summer Camp. We done to have that a we done to have the Long distance Telephone Bills that some people run up either a his wife added. A a it a worked out really Well. We be used our Reserve to buy clothes for the kids and to buy a Jerry Hall said Good natured ribbing from his cohorts and an inability to conceal his cigarette habit from his parents Are the Only problems he a had since joining the Reserve unit three years ago. A a it a really pretty Cool a Jerry Hall said. A they take care of me. I kind of envy them especially now. They have each other. But All in a thinking about is leaving my Girlfriend the Halls Learned they could be called up in August while the unit was on a training Mission in Okinawa shortly after iraqi troops invaded Kuwait. A a we be made out our wills and told our other children what to do if something happens a Rotha Hall said. A they told us we could be away six months or a year. If War Breaks out they said we could be there for the that possibility does no to sit Well with the Halls two daughters and two other sons. A i hate this a said Lea Pyles one of the Halls daughters. A a in be never really been away from my parents for any length of time. We grew up with them going to summer Camp but this is different. A we kind of figured they a never leave the states a she said. A this has been scary. One Day we re All right the next we re All crying. You try to be Strong but it Isnit easy. Its like in a 10 years old
