European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 23, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse To position itself for an attack against the Republican guard. At exactly 6 30 ., the regiment began rolling Forward. A it Wasny to till much later that the first sergeant came Over the radio net and said a we be got two Wias and one Kia a a Zultzke recalled. A the co called Back and said a who a the Kia a and first Sergent came Back and said a codename and everything got real that was How feb. 26 a the 26th,�?� said Maxie Fannin. A that was the longest Day in anyone a in l troop spec. James a a sly Glueck drove a tank called the legend As the regiment drove toward the Republican guard. The skies were Clearing. A right behind us was a Rainbow a Glueck said. A then just out of the Blue a horse came running out in front of us. All at once. Then it ran in Between the Bradley and kind of the Crews of the four tanks who spotted the beast began calling themselves a the four horsemen of the Fannin was a scout in an l troop Bradley. The scouts began taking enemy artillery and were ordered to pull Back but one of the Bradley broke Down. They decided there was enough time to Tow the broken Bradley. But after hooking it up the escape from the artillery fire was done in an agonizing crawl of is Miles an hour. Thick morning fog rolled in again halting the attack. By 1 . The weather had changed again. A furious sandstorm raged from the North a desert wind the arabs have named in the East the Battle has come to be known As 73 easting. The regiment was driving due East through the sandstorm. Each Kilometre on the military maps was Given a number and the Forward elements of an iraqi Republican guard division were spotted somewhere around the 73rd line. The enemy division was called the Tawa Kalna arabic for a go with staff sgt. Robert Peterson with e troop started receiving enemy artillery at the height of the sandstorm. A we moved out so rapidly that it had no effect a Peterson said. A it came in and came in real at 4 07 ., e troop crested a Low Ridge and drove headlong into a formation of enemy tanks. A there they Are a Peterson radioed. A a let a go get them. Lets not Stop till we get through those his commander capt. . Mcmaster told Peterson to hold up. A i can to hold up a Peterson replied. A a in a right in the Middle of the suns bitches. In be got to get the fight lasted just 23 minutes. At least 28 iraqi tanks 16 personnel carriers and 39 trucks were destroyed. More than 300 iraqi soldiers were killed. E troop suffered no casualties. A i was eating a amp is a recalled sgt. Ronald Schoon maker. A we started taking rounds and i dropped the bag of a amp is. My gunner said a i got i said a wait a minute in a picking up my a once he got the candies rounded up Schoonmaker began blasting. A we kind of demolished them to put it lightly a said spec. Scott Camp. A we hit Mem hard fast. And i was thinking a hey this is War. This is everyone was a kill kill first sgt. Bill Virrill saw iraqi soldiers lie Down and hide their rifles then when they thought no one was looking started sniping at tanks. A so a Virrill said a my vehicle and another vehicle sort of annihilated later Virrill was guarding a captured iraqi officer who spoke some English. A i asked a Why Are you doing this a a Virrill recalled. A the said some . Like a Saddam a got my family and All that. I said a no really Why Are you doing this a a his Bluff called the officer told Virrill a because Iraq has a very powerful Virrill pointed to a destroyed iraqi tank with charcoal bodies spilling out of it. A a that a Power a he asked. Next he pointed to an american tank. A an my a Virrill told the iraqi. A a that a power.the rout to the right i troop attacked the bulk of the iraqi formations half an hour later. A it was like watching a movie a said spec. Steven Swafford a Bradley Driver. A like apocalypse the fighting went much like e troops a a total rout of the enemy a except that it lasted longer because i troop had to Clear enemy bunkers and buildings. The regiment had struck the Tawa Kalna at its training area Headquarters the equivalent of the american army a Grafe Wohr ranges in Germany. A we killed a lot of tanks a said pfc. Michael of Donnell of a Bradley Crew. A we had an Pew enemy prisoner with us in Back. Next thing i knew we had some kind of malfunction with the track. We were standing still. Next thing i know a Mojo Flash of Light came through the sgt. 1st class Ron Mullinix and his gunner sgt. Kurt Alcorn were blown out of the Turret. The Driver spec. Greg a who ssh Scott was severely wounded by shrapnel in his Back. Alcorn was burned head to toe. Mullinix had Metal in his leg. Spec. Joe Gilman was almost knocked unconscious. He yelled a open theft ing door a and the Crew ran out. The iraqi prisoner disappeared in the commotion. An hour later shaken but unhurt of Donnell sat on a Ridge line overlooking the Battlefield while medics treated his Crew mates. It was after Sundown Andin Over and out a feb. 24,1991 the allies launch their Long threatened ground assault. The . Xviii airborne corps charges virtually unopposed through Iraq while marines and coalition forces launch a frontal assault into Kuwait. . Vii corps heavy tank divisions poise to attack the Republican guard from the rear. A feb. 25 a scud missile kills 28 gis in saudi Arabia. The coalition attack builds momentum As the weather deteriorates. A feb. 26 Iraq is in full Retreat. Marines and coalition forces Circle Kuwait City. Vii corps troops meet and begin routing the Republican guard. A feb. 27 by Midnight heavy . Divisions have rolled into the guard and the largest tank Battle since world War ii begins. Allied forces liberate Kuwait City. A feb. 28 ground forces across the theater array themselves for the final destruction of Republican guard remnants. However the attack is called off and president Bush s cease fire begins at 8 The horizon glowed from burning vehicles and pounding artillery As i troop mopped up the area. A thank god i m alive. Thank god the rest of the Crew is alive a of Donnell said As he watched the fighting. A and god bless the rest of the platoon. I Hope they kill the whole rest of the a Short distance away capt. Dan Miller stood atop a tank being refuelled. A i was surprised a he said his face covered with Gunpowder. A i was expecting it to be Tough. The Republican guard is supposed to be their first team but they weren to any better than the Reserve army Guys we hit several of the gunners likened the fight to a training exercise at at dusk on the regiments Northern flank the soldiers from g troop never claimed the fighting was easy. A Little before dusk about the same time that the i troop Bradley was hit a Lucky shot from an iraqi t-55 killed sgt. Nels Andrew Moller a Bradley gunner. Watching More enemy die pfc. Jason kick shouted a a that a revenge for sgt. Moller a the rest of g troop was shaken. The soldiers received orders to hold their ground rather than Advance through the enemy positions. It took hours of sporadic fighting and artillery barrages before Many members of the troops front line Felt they had control of the Battle. They weren to relieved until 10 ., Long after the rest of the regiment had been pulled off line. A they kept dying and dying and dying a a bewildered 1st it. Keith Garwick said of the iraqis who charged his line on foot Only to be machine gunned. One account said 140 enemy foot soldiers were killed the Small cavalry regiments Job was Only to find and pin Down the guard. Afterwards at about Midnight heavy armoured divisions moved in to carry on the fighting. Pfc. Jim Harris from k troop watched the 2nd army div fwd and 1st inf div task Force Roll past his Bradley in the darkness. A it took about three hours a he said. A i was just sitting on my Turret watching saying a wow when they Gonna Stop a i was sitting up there just in amazement saying a when Are those Guys Gonna quit coming through a a it seemed Harris said like 1,000 tanks were rumbling past him heading into their own Battles on the other Side of the darkness. Contributing to this report staff writer Rosemary Sawyer. Sas Vince Crawley the morning after the Battle of 73 easting soldiers of g troop and a Mascot mingle beside a Cross erected for a memorial service for sgt. Nels Andrew Moller who died in action the night before. February 23, 1992 sunday a Page 5
