The Battle of Caterpillar Ridge

D9 (RIP) · 03-05-2004, 15:59

There has been a request made that I explain my "D9" moniker. Alright, here's the story.

I've got to preface this with a little background. During GWI, I was a boot (aka Cherry) right out of infantry school. I was assigned to the TOW missile platoon of the 7th Marine Regt. During the months leading up to the war, we were assigned to a Regimental Combat Team (designated Task Force Ripper), which was composed of 3rd Tank Battalion, 1st Bn 7th Mar, and 1st Bn 5th Mar. The TOW Platoon of 7th Mar was combined with the 7th Mar HMG platoon to form 3 screening elements for the Task Force, designated CAAT (Combined Anti-Armor Team) 1, 2, and 3. CAAT1 would screen to the front and West of the TF, CAAT2 to the front and East, and CAAT3 would provide Log train security.

Normally, as a boot fresh out of school I would have been made a driver, but two factors intervened to put me behind the gun. One, the wife of the gunner in my vehicle had just had a baby as we were deploying. Also, he was due to get out as soon as we got back (I think he was stop lossed, in fact). So he had requested to be a driver, which is all things being equal a safer duty. Second, I was an armor ID ace. I knew armor like nobody else, which had earned me honors as the top graduate in infantry school and soon led to my giving classes even to the Regimental S2 on Iraqi armor capabilities and vehicles. The combination of these factors gave them the confidence to put me in the gun. I was very happy about this fact.

During the invasion it was envisioned that TF Ripper would do just as our name implied, and rip a hole through the two lines of Iraqi defenses that girded the Southern border of Kuwait. By the time we had breached and assaulted through the second defensive network, we were expected to be combat ineffective. At that time, TF Pappa Bear and some others were supposed to pour through the holes we punched and drive to our objectives within Kuwait itself. Nobody anticipated the massive, collective surrender of most of Iraq's forces, although we were obviuosly pleased. The result of this surrender en masse was that our TF was completely intact after making the second breach, having sustained only a handful of casualties in light fighting.

But by the time the second breach was complete, TOWs were already proving to be an incredible asset to the TF, as we quickly silenced the dozen or so tanks actually still defending those positions from a loooooong way away. While others were searching for targets, TOWs were all over the radio engaging and destroying armor. Unfortunately, I didn't spot any targets in my sector during these breaches.

Our next objective was the Emir of Kuwait's Ranch at the Southern Tip of the burning Burgan Oil Fields, which we took easily destroying a few more vehicles in the process. Next we moved on to secure Al Jaber Airfield. At Al Jaber we encountered enemy armor en force. In what was until that time the largest tank battle in USMC history, Ripper's TOW platoon accounted for itself well in the fight. And, yours truly had the pleasure of seeing a TOW IIE follow a smooth track and impact an Iraqi T-62 that was firing on our flank and obscured within the smoke of the oil fires burning to our East during the engagement. I popped my cherry, and I was ecstatic. We eventually secured Al Jaber, taking a few hundred dead-enders prisoner as our infantry assaulted through and overwhelmed the airfield's defenders. For those who have seen the pictures I posted on the other site, all of those photos of the burning tanks at dusk are of Iraqi forces at Al Jaber.

By the third day of the war, Ripper was at the tip of the 1st Marine Division's spear leading the charge to Kuwait City. We were much farther than anyone had ever imagined we would be, and in the hours since the fight at Al Jaber had continued to encounter sporadic pockets of resistance. Since our CAAT teams were out in front, we usually made and kept contact. CAAT1 and CAAT2 had accounted for almost 50 pieces of Iraqi armor up to that point (ultimately we would destroy 54). But, I had not found a target since the Al Jaber engagement. It wasn't that big of a deal, but I was certainly motivated to destroy any enemy vehicles that might happen to appear. It's a little hard to explain, but when you start hearing the sounds of your buddies engaging targets over the radio, it lights a real fire in you. I wanted to be fighting with them for sure.

So, when on the third day of the war I found myself looking at a tank at about 3500m in the thermal sight to our front, I was pleased.

It was late in the afternoon, but the plume of smoke from the Burgan was directly over us. Only you couldn't tell that it was a plume, because it stretched from one end of the horizon to the other, and just lay over the entire landscape like a thick black cloud. Very little light penetrated the smoke, giving the late afternoon scene the feel of deep dusk. The light from burning Iraqi positions cast a hint of fiery orange across the scene, along with deep shadows.

TF Ripper was about to make a turn to the northeast to vector in on Kuwait City Airport, our next objective. So as part of CAAT2, we had stopped and were scanning for targets while the elements of the TF to the West pivoted on us to make the turn. The landscape was a former Iraqi defensive position, with large sandy berms, rolls of wire, and beams of steel and timber strewn everywhere. B-52's had obviously worked this place well, because 15 ft deep craters pock-marked the field everywhere, hidden in deep shadows. It was a battlefield scene, honestly, like I would have thought only Hollywood could create.

I was scanning across the top edge of a berm in the distance, using the thermal sight because of the low light conditions, when a target came into view. Rising into view from the uniform edge of the berm in the distance, was a boxy metal vehicle. The lowest part of the vehicle was obscured by the berm, but rising about the berm was a think horizontal rectangle that appeared to be the the broad, flat chassis of an armored vehicle. Rising further from this rectangle, was a boxy superstructure. Attached to the sides of the superstructure were what appeared to be storage containers. Then coming from the front of the superstructure and sticking up and out was a long tube which was glowing bright red. This was a tank, in my estimation - one of a the Chieftans that Iraq had.

I told my squad leader, seated in the hummer below, that I had a target. "What kind of vehicle?" he inquired. "Hard to tell," I answered, "I'm pretty sure it's armor. I think it's a Chieftan."

"Black six, tango eight, over," he called over the radio.
"Go ahead tango eight," the lieutenant replied.
"We've got 1 enemy tank, possible chieftan, 3500m to the direct front. Vehicle is hot, probably manned and active. Request permission to engage, over," my squad leader called back.
"Wait one, tango eight, over," came the LT's reply.

"Cpl Sevier, why don't you get up here and have a look and tell me what you think it is," I asked. He crawled up the turret, and looked at the target for a while. "Definitely a tank," he noted, "I can't tell what kind." He sank back into the passenger seat of the vehicle and picked up the radio again.

"Tango eight, black six, there are no friendlies in that sector. If you've got armor you are clear to fire," the lieutenant replied. "Roger, black six, tango eight engaging," Sevier said.

I was excited. I was going to get another tank. My driver, Trujillo, ran around to the back of the vehicle and pulled the antenna down. "Backblast area all secure," he shouted. Keeping my eye on the target, I reached up and armed the missile that slept in the tube over my left shoulder. It was about to come to life. I lifted the trigger protective cover, focused, and warned, "firing." I pressed the trigger.

The trigger clicked, and then inside the lauch tube next to my right ear I could hear the gyros inside the missile whine as the missile prepared for its flight. Then, the 77 lb missile exploded from the launch tube. A TOW missile is a powerful weapon, and when it leaves the tube next to your head, it takes a lot of focus to keep yourself smooth so you don't jerk the weapon system off target. But I was well-trained and focused, and as the glare of the missile's lauch faded out of the thermal sight I could see the thermal beacon on the back of the missile as it settled in on my cross-hairs, which I was still holding steadily on the enemy tank to my front - on the turret just over the cupola.

[continued below]

D9 (RIP) · 03-05-2004, 16:01

[continued]

At this point you can hear your own breathing. About 15 seconds elapsed and I was completely focused on bringing that missile to impact precisely where I wanted it: at the bottom of the turret of a tank 3500m away that looked no bigger than a peppercorn in my night sight. An eternity passed. Then, without any sound, a flash filled my sight where the tank had once been, momentarily blinding the sight. As the glare again faded out of the sight and the picture returned, only a large fire and rising column of smoke existed where moments before there was an enemy tank.

I was ecstatic. My second kill. I was a boot, for sure, but I was fighting like a Marine, and I was damn proud of that.

"Black six, tango eight, hit, kill, catastrophic."
"Roger tango eight. Good shot," LT returned.

"Fuck yeah!!!!" my squad leader said. High fives went around. We were a couple of young, hard-charging Marines. We considered killing our business, and I was very pleased to have just serviced another client. As the minutes ticked by after that shot, I was buzzing with excitement and pride.

Finally, the Task Force was ready to start moving again, and we made the turn to the northeast that put us on the vector to the airport. Because of the turn when we moved out, our LOA was going to take my vehicle to the southeast of the destroyed target by about a kilometer. But other elements of my unit would be passing directly next to it, and as we had done throughout the attack, they would confirm the vehicle type.

Finally as we moved, the radio crackled to life.

"Black six, tango two over." One of CAAT1's TOWs was passing the my target.

"Tango two, black six, go ahead, over," the LT responed.
"Black six, I've got eyes on tango eight's target. [pause] Be advised, that's a negative on that vehicle being enemy armor. [pause] Be advised, that target was a D9 caterpillar, over..... a bulldozer, over."

There was a long pause, it seemed like ten minutes. Everyone in my vehicle was silent, and I went from feeling like Rambo to feeling like one of the Keystone cops. I remember thinking to myself disgustedly, "and you're supposed to be the friggin' armor ID guru."

Finally, the LT broke the silence, "tango eight, you copy tango two's last, over?"

"Roger black six," we replied. I was, to say the least embarrased. Funny thing was also how quickly my squad leader, who was also embarrased, forgot that he had looked at it to. "Fucking boot's shooting fucking bulldozers," he said aloud, with disgust.

LOL, by the time we secured Kuwait City, everyone was joking about it and the nickname Dozer was already being bandied about. I was surprised at one point when the gunny called me aside and told me that they would not be investigating the incident. I was surprised they had even considered it. But in the end, honestly, LOL, IT DID LOOK LIKE A FRIGGIN TANK. One of these days, I'm going to get in photoshop and produce a visual aid, LOL.

So that's my story, and I'm sticking to it. Besides, it was probably busy building enemy fighting positions when I nailed it. Hell, the way I see it, they should've given me a medal

.

NousDefionsDoc · 03-05-2004, 16:06

LOL - I love that story. this should be in Briefback no?

D9 (RIP) · 03-05-2004, 16:10

Please do move it to wherever you think most appropriate.

This was the long version, LOL.

NousDefionsDoc · 03-05-2004, 16:13

Done. be sure you PM Mr. Harsey and tell him where to find it, he's been waiting.

**Roguish Lawyer** · 03-05-2004, 16:15

I think you tell the story better every time, D9! Thanks.

ktek01 · 03-05-2004, 16:27

That is a great story. We need some computer guru to come up with some flash animation to go with it, LOL.

**Bill Harsey** · 03-06-2004, 10:18

D9, That was an epic story! Well told and GOOD SHOOTING! I'll bet that operator must have thought for a micro second he had a catastrophic mechanical failure. Oh yeah, he did. LOL! Thanks! Bill

**The Reaper** · 03-06-2004, 12:08

D9, you are a gifted writer and tell an excellent story.

All joking aside, any tracked vehicle in a Combat Zone not being operated by friendlies is hostile, IMHO.

Anyone here who has not scanned a potentially hostile target through a thermal sight at over two miles distance while in a very thin skinned vehicle under combat conditions feel free to criticize.

Nice shot, boot.

TR

D9 (RIP) · 03-08-2004, 17:20

Appreciate the good words, Sir.

Attached is the aforepromised visual aid. This is as close as I can get to what something like that looks like in the thermal sight.