European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 25, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse A via Essaw. A ten Fyke met Iii mail "4iij a j h f a in a a a y v t a r Jim a my hip Celia a a it i graphic trooper aids a fellow Soldier who has an irritating Grain of Sand from the saudi arabian desert in his Eye. The Sand Fine As Talcum powder is the Nemesis of High tech weapons and equipment. F. A a. -. Notional geographic standing at Long narrow tables men of the 1st Cav div eat their one hot meat of the Day at a Forward combat base in Eastern saudi Arabia. A it a a a a National geographic a Bradley fighting vehicle churns up a Cloud of dust at a Forward base of the 1st Cav div. Cobra helicopter gunships in the background Are poised to scout far ahead of the heavy tank division which would be one of the first to taste Battle in any Allied offensive against Iraq a a a a. A a a. Quot National Geoffr optic air Force 1st it. Dean Lee right one of the Forward air controllers with front line combat units and a 1st Cav div artillery officer scour the desert for landmarks. By Steve Raymer National geographic 3q-mile-an-hour wind drives Sand As Lino As. Talcum powder Over the wastes of an a ancient seabed As Tro pets of the army s 7th. Cav regt lower the american Flag Over a carry own in saudi Arabia it is 4 48 p in. A Sunset a and the do sort is quickly. Cooling off. Atop a tank s radio Antenna Guidon Flag of the cavalry stands stiff against a a a the wind ,. A -. A a. A a the soldiers boast that this is the same regiment a. Whose detachments ought the Sioux to the last Man with i. Col. George Armstrong Custer at the Little 1 Bighorn and routed North vietnamese regulars in the. Canopied Jungle of tire la Drang Valley. A the Camp takes its name from "garryowon,�?T1 Custer s favorite Bat Lejune adapted from an old Irish drinking song. A. A a a a tanks and helicopters have Long since i c placed. Horses in the modern cavalry. If ground War Breaks out a a with Iraq the 7th Cav is Coram to to among the first american units to taste Battle a Quot a a. A a it of the 1st Cav div troopers of theists 7th Cav regt Sling their rifles and press into the wind toward the camouflaged mess tent for their first hot meal of the Day. Officers and privates St a and s to u i de i to o s out docs and Edt their Chicken Caccia Tore is the. Temperature drops toward 50 degrees fahrenheit. A when these sandstorms come up Quot says capt. Kurt Christensen ,31 of St pout Minn a we just say it s another wonderful Day in saudi Arabia Quot a Quot soldiers Are survivors. We re doing Fine Quot says maj. Mike of Marker Heights Texas executive a a officer of the Squadron of More than 700 men. A a a. A Quot our biggest concern is the families Back Home Quot he adds staking Sand out of his grading Crew Cut. Quot. The division s than 700 women Are assigned to non combat duties a a. A a Masterson surveys the nighttime fighting positions of Bradley armoured personnel carriers equipped with a cannons and anti tank missiles. A a a nearby Vietnam Era cobra helicopter gunships. Bear ing rockets and Gatling guns look Tike Black dragonflies. A. A Quot a a a it is the Squadron s thud month m Sayidi aiabuvso.it.-. Rich Eastern province a. The have.-1 mined to tight m the deceit. At their Home base of fort Hood Texas and at the army s National training Center in Southern California. Alter dinner they return to their tents to listen to. A radios write letters Home and Clear weapons of Sand a and grit. A a. A. One of their most popular diversions they say is. Watching Quot Gladiator Battles Quot Between poisonous Black .scorpions,. A others listen to american Rock and country music and. Iraqi propaganda on Baghdad s Quot voice of the troopers say better than the Low Power armed forces network pm radio station 107.&Quot.a a a a a. Unruffled by Quot Baghdad Betty s 7.appeal to Lay Down a their arms or her taunts about unhappy loved ones at Home these volunteers Are professional soldiers. Quot i tune in Betty just to get a laugh Quot says a Captain who asked not to be identified. The soldiers Are polite they shake hands they rarely. Curse and when they Salute their officers in this Forward a combat zone they bark Quot Garryowen sir Quot. Quot this in t the same army you and knew in Vietnam,1 says master sgt Tern Fuller 42, a Veteran of the of forces in Southeast Asia nearly a generation ago. In Vietnam the 1st Cav was known As a hard drinking hard fighting division whose helicopters were. / decorated with crossed cavalry sabers and the motto Quot god saves a Cav kills Quot / in saudi Arabia Fuller says Quot these kids drink the v locally brewed Pepsi and rarely . As the sandstorm ebbs and the Milky Way fills the sky. Over this moslem country no refrains of Quot Garryowen Quot or. Any other drinking song Are heard. V. Quot a the 7th is All business. V Quot Short of War Quot says it. Col. Walter Quot skip Quot Sharp the Squadron commander Quot we have a training Cycle for this a outfit that goes right through March a a. Sharp s attention is drawn to the tactical operations a Center a Cluster of tents and personnel. Carriers ringed by barbed wire. A. The thrashing sounds of a helicopter have alerted an observation Post. A soldiers wearing $7,000 night vision goggles have. Ipod red soviet made Mig-24 gunships. Tonight they torm out to be syrian a Quot friendlies Quot a a from the coalition of Tiore than two dozen nations that Are massed against Iraq a Quot Titis in t nato Quot complains one staff officer Tito eerie glow of red lights. Quot there is just no air space. Management and we worry about fratricide. A killing friendlies a a a. V. \ a. A the engines of several Bradley fighting vehicles. Snort alive before 5 the next morning and Camp -. Garryowen is humming Well before Dawn. A a. The american Flag goes up. Soldiers Shower and shave a Rule even front a and Don desert a a camouflage uniforms that they be already worn four Days. A. \ v. no hot food at the mess tent the troopers eat the army s new soft res Many soldiers scorn. Them As Quot meals a Quot pass the hot sauce please Quot says warrant officer tory Ash 22,.of Enon Ohio Pilot Quot it ii kill the taste of . A a. There is Little talk of War yith Iraq inside the. Sandbagged Bunker that Ash Sharps with follow pilots. They talk about Sand. I. A. It eats helicopter Rotor blades.-, clogs engines and. Blinds pilots who then can t navigate visually but must rely on dead reckoning finding their position through data such As time distance and Compass Reading warrant officer lower Kercheville 27, ,Texas . A he has a healthy respect for the desert. A Quot we use the hard toll a the roads a but Here Quot he says Quot but you better have your dead reckoning Cori i or you re Gonna get lost Quot a along . Helicopters Are ranking up to ii a Battle Drill this morning a mock reconnaissance of the iraqi lines with the gunships protecting smaller a a. A unarmed scout but on a nearby picnic table a maintenance Crew a chief has other concerns. -. A Quot. /. Quot this place was Rich in tile about 3 5 million years ago Quot says staff sgt. Bill Cope 33, of Apple Valley c if Ope who minored in geology in College displays f collection of saudi pottery As a client shells. Fossils Coral collected from the surrounding desert /. Quot this desert Quot he explains to a Cluster of Mechanic. A Quot was full of ferns and plants the life that a compressed with heat and other life forms to give / a this a. A. At Squadron Headquarters Christensen thumbs a pamphlet Given to every front line . Soldier. A. Quot threat Book Quot it explains everything com iraqi Lank armament to treatment of scorpion bites. A. Christensen a former sergeant who went a University of Minnesota on an army scholars Ftp of himself and his unit. A Quot when the rough stuff comes trom up North, a says be got to Call out the cavalry Quot Wnm Jim in Page 14 a a a the stars and stripes tuesday wednesday. Of Cember 2526, 1990 the stars and stripes Page 15
