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The mission of US ARCENT, Kuwait is to acquire, maintain and protect a heavy
brigade (reinforced) equipment set, to plan, direct and support all joint
training exercises with the Kuwaiti Armed Forces and, in concert with the
Government of Kuwait, to establish and maintain the contingency plans for the
security of Kuwait. The center of Central Command operations is at Camp Doha,
twenty miles north of Kuwait City. Doha is a large logistics base with a
working population of over two thousand personnel - US soldiers and airmen,
and both US and Kuwaiti contract personnel.
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The following poem, written by a member of the 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry during one of their early Operation "INTRINSIC ACTION" assignments, summarizes the ultimate benefit gained by the training and eternal vigilance of our "First Team".
Upon steel beasts we ride.
Through desert twisters and barren wastelands we shall travel,
wreaking havoc on those who oppose.
On the front lines we wait and wait and wait,
waiting for the enemy to attack . . . but they will not.
For they know what we would bestow upon them should they dare attempt to.
They will all drown in a sea of blood.
We shall hack them down with unimaginable force and fury,
and crush their meager army into oblivion!
So let it be said, "Upon steel beasts we sleep and eat
and sleep and eat until the time comes to fight
and then we shall unleash the Dogs of War!"
by Specialist Jacob A. Brooks
"A" Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment
These four-month exercises are conducted utilizing the pre-positioned Army War Reserves Set 5 (AWR-5) at Camp Doha, Kuwait, to minimize the time/distance challenge of CONUS deployments. AWR-5 is a full, heavy brigade set of equipment that is ready to fight as fast as troops can be flown into theater. ARCENT-Kuwait is able to issue at least a battalion set of that equipment every 24 hours. The Army routinely exercises the equipment at least twice a year during the exercise series with brigade command posts and battalion Task Forces (TFs) from the 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas, and the 3rd Infantry Division (ID)(M), Fort Stewart, Georgia. The 4th ID(M), Fort Hood, and the 1st Armored Division, Bad Kreuznach, Germany.
Although termed an "exercise", these deployments actually constituted a continuous operational presence of American ground forces in Kuwait, with different units rotating in for periods of four months at a time. These exercises are designed to provide continued US ground presence in Kuwait, improve interoperability and battle staff proficiency between US and Kuwaiti armed forces, and enhance US military force capabilities to rapidly deploy to the region. A typical exercise involves approximately 1,250 - 1,500 US Army soldiers from elements of Headquarters, US Army Forces Central Command, Ft. McPherson, Georgia. combined with elements of the rotating Task Force (TF). The deployment typically included a battalion task force, combat support units and combat service support units. The task force, deployed without equipment, draws from the prepositioned equipment in Kuwait.
Since Desert Storm, the 1st Cavalry Division has responded several times to contingency requirements to participate in joint desert training, and deploy in maneuvering exercises which support the mission objectives of the US Central Command. Each operation has underscored the need for vigilance and quick response and reinforced the value of pre-positioned equipment and limited forward presence in offsetting the strategic time/distance challenges inherent in winning the "race for Kuwait."
Each training mission starts with a complete familiarization program of Reception, Staging, Onward movement and Integration (RSOI) which helps ease the transition from the hill country of Ft, Hood, Texas to the desert environment and operations of Camp Doha within a short period of time.
Reception starts when soldiers or equipment land at one of the ports of debarkation of Kuwait. Equipment, bags and supplies are palletized and prepared for convoy to Camp Doha's drawing lot.
At the drawing lot, soldiers draw their equipment from pre-positioned stores. The available inventory includes M1A1 Abrams tanks and M2 Bradley fighting vehicles as well as other armor, tank, artillery and engineer sets. This stage is not finished until all units have completed the draw and uploaded all combat equipment. All equipment receives preventive maintenance checks and services prior to departing.
Onward movement begins with convoy operations to the marshaling area. Supplies and equipment are loaded onto trucks, and tracked vehicles are loaded onto heavy equipment transports. The convoys then move to their positions in the desert to begin training or contingency operations. This phase ends with the downloading of assets and tactical road march to the Kabal.
The final phase, integration, is the tactical fusion of the arriving units into the Kuwait defensive plan. Training - at the individual and unit level - takes place at the multi-service and multi-national level. These training exercises have four main purposes:
The significant elements of each of tour of duty of the Division during the last decade of the century follows:
Fresh from organizational restructuring, which restored the 3rd Brigade to the 1st Cavalry Division, plans began to return units to Kuwait in compliance to the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreements. The first units selected for these exercises were elements of the newly activated 3rd Brigade. Commanders and staffs deployed to the Area of Responsibility (AOR) for the first time since Operation DESERT STORM to provide local command and control of the forces and to emphasize US resolve to counter any Iraqi aggression.
On 20 October 1992, Task Force 3-41 Infantry, comprised of soldiers from the newly reactivated 3rd (Greywolf) Brigade came to Camp Doha for extensive ground training. Iraq remained quiet before and during the operation, but the soldiers of the First Team were back at Camp Doha, Kuwait. TF 3-41 Infantry was composed of the following elements:
"HHC", 3rd Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment
"A" Company, 3rd Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment
"B" Company, 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment
"C" Company, 3rd Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment
"B" Battery, 3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
"B" Battery, 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery
"B" Company, 8th Engineer Battalion
15th Personnel Support Company
215th Forward Support Battalion
They deployed on short notice and upon arrival, drew their allotment of prepositioned equipment and were ready to either train or fight. Phase one of the exercise consisted of extensive desert training. Phase two, which consisted of joint training and maneuver exercises with the Kuwait armed forces, was completed in December allowing the TF to return to Ft. Hood 15 December.
Reorganization of the Division continued throughout 1992 with the unit designations for the battalions remaining from the former "Tiger" Brigade were returned to the 2nd Armored Division. This action was done to realign the designations to their parent divisions. The result being that the 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment being redesignated 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment just before their redeployment to Kuwait in January for participation in "Iris Gold", the joint Task-Force Kuwait.
Operation IRIS GOLD, a deployment in January 1993 to support a Special Forces Operation, was not a scheduled Intrinsic Action Rotation. Iraq had begun conducting training exercises close to the Kuwait border. Inasmuch as the elements of TF 3-41 Infantry had just completed an Intrinsic Action Rotation it only made sense to send them back immediately as a reactionary force.
On 15 January 1993, Task Force 1-9 Cavalry, comprised of soldiers from the newly redesignated elements of the 3rd (Greywolf) Brigade returned to Camp Doha, Kuwait to prepare for a defensive posture against Iraq, if necessary. TF 1-9 Cavalry was composed of the following elements:
"HHC", 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry RegimentTheir training included coalition work with the 151st Armored Battalion of Kuwait including Military Operations on Urbanized Terrain (MOUT) training with Bradley fighting vehicles and the practice of underground concealment of M1A1 tanks. In all, their training provided another opportunity to strengthen the ties with Kuwait showing a resolve to support the Mutual Defense Agreements and enhance the deployment capability of the 1st Cavalry Division. The Task Force returned to Ft. Hood on 15 March 1993.
In early October 1994, Operation VIGILANT WARRIOR was initiated. Forces were deployed to the Central Region in response to the threat of aggression by the Iraq troop movements which amassed large bodies of troops in southern Iraq along the Kuwait border in November.
As Iraq began to pull back its Republican Guard units north of the 32nd parallel, coalition forces conducted joint and combined maneuver training designed to further enhance operations and interoperability.
By August 1995, Iraq was continuing a five-week-old pattern of "unusual" troop movements of training in and around garrisons, at surface-to-air missile launcher sites and at air bases. The United States had not detected any signs of planning or preparation for invasion of any of its neighbors by Iraq.
The Pentagon dubbed its reply to the Iraqi movements Operation VIGILANT SENTINEL, an operation that included sending forces and warships closer to the Gulf as well as initiating war games in Jordan.
From August to December 1995 during VIGILANT SENTINEL, the 1st Cavalry Division trained with the equipment, showing they are fully prepared to fight alongside our Kuwaiti allies. Well maintained, rapidly issued and versatile, AWR-5 puts a fighting force on the ground swiftly. In addition the scheduled exercise of Operation INTRINSIC ACTION was moved up in Kuwait.
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The main body of 1,300 soldiers, fully operational within four hours after landing, came highly motivated and ready for some of the most intense, real-world, combined-arms training the world has to offer. Becoming a part of the ongoing Operation VIGILANT SENTINEL, INTRINSIC ACTION was originally scheduled for October, but the unexplained troop movements in Iraq prompted an earlier starting date for the exercise.
The mission of TF 1-5 was to conduct combined arms training and force protection operations with the Kuwaiti Army at the Udairi Range. The training began with platoon gunnery, then progressed to company-sized operations. The mission culminated with a Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise.
TF 1-5, part of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, was composed of the following elements:
1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment
1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
15th Forward Support Battalion
27th Main Support Battalion
3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery
2nd Battalion, 77th Armor
91st Engineer Battalion
"A" Battery, 21st Field Artillery;
"C" Battery, 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery
545th Military Police Company
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Navigating over an ocean of sand, the TF 1-5 thundered across the Kuwaiti desert under a blanket of darkness. Suddenly, the boom of Howitzers firing pierced the night. Mortar crews lit the night up with rounds of illuminating ground bursts to mark sectors of fire. After transitioning into a delay, TF 1-5 spent the remainder of the night battling a motorized rifle regiment. As the sun began to rise over the horizon, the tanks and Bradley vehicles started to pull back, conducting a rearward passage of lines.
In November 1995, TF 1-5 left Kuwait after an accelerated Intrinsic Action to deter Iraqi aggression.
On 26 August 1996, Task Force 1-9 comprised of soldiers from the 3rd (Greywolf) Brigade came to Camp Doha for extensive ground training. Iraq remained quiet before and during the operation, but the soldiers of the First Team were back at Camp Doha, Kuwait. TF 1-9, part of the 3rd (Greywolf) Brigade, was composed of the following elements:
3rd (Greywolf) Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division
"HHC", 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment
"D" Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment
"B" Company, 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment
"D" Company, 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment
"A" Battery, 2nd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
"A" Company, 8th Engineer Battalion
215th Forward Support Battalion
15th Finance Battalion
Immediately after the jet-engines of the transport airplanes were silenced, TF 1-9 hit the ground running. Following a bus ride to Camp Doha, the 3rd (Greywolf) Brigade put a carefully planned operation into action.
A row of Bradley Fighting Vehicles (BFVs) lay in wait for their crews at the
Tactical Assembly Area (TAA) TUESDAY. Once there, the troops picked up force
protection ammunition and moved to the marshaling area for staging and
reorganization. Tracked vehicles were loaded onto heavy equipment transports
and lowboys for transport to the Logistical Release Point One at TAA
HEADHUNTER.
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The hot air at Udairi Range can be like a blast furnace. But for the mortarmen of TF 1-9, the heat becomes a great advantage in that you can actually see downrange where the rounds impact. As hot as it is, the air is less dense, providing less aerodynamic drag, allowing the rounds go farther with greater accuracy. The mortar platoon from Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry adapted to the new conditions and quickly used this advantage to get some unbeatable training.
Designing ranges was just one of the tasks the engineers engaged in during Intrinsic Action 96-3. Every field site was surrounded by a berm. The engineers had constructed ten to twelve miles of sand walls during the first week of training. Upon completion of the tactical training, the engineers concentrated on site improvements and their own role in the TF 1-9 training for the next three months before they returned home in December. Yet, even though they left, the results of their work remained for the next units that would come to Kuwait, an enduring piece of craftsmanship for future gunners to use.
As the soldiers of TF 1-9 engaged in their training exercises, word came of
the alert sounded for their comrades at Ft. Hood, Texas. Tensions in the Gulf
areas increased when the Iraqi troops moved into a "safe haven" at Irbil in
northern Iraq.
III Corps Headquarters - Ft. Hood, TX |
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On 17 September after several days of preparation, III Corps was given the
green light to deploy additional forces to Kuwait as part of Exercise
Intrinsic Action. To support the directive, a US Army Brigade Combat Team
headquarters and two battalions, consisting of approximately 3,500 soldiers,
from the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division deployed from Robert Gray Army
Airfield. The deploying units were the 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry, the 1st
Battalion, 5th Cavalry, the remainder of the 82nd Field Artillery and support
personnel from "A" Battery, 21st Multiple Rocket System, 68th Chemical Company
and the 13th Signal Battalion to augment the elements already with TF 1-9.
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On 19 September (Upper Left), Major General Leon J. La Porte gives the deploying 1st Cavalry Division forces - the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 1st Cavalry Division, a rousing sendoff. The Brigade, commanded by Commander Col. Eric T. Olson, will reinforce the 1,200 soldiers already in Kuwait training with the Kuwaiti armed forces as part of exercise Intrinsic Action 96-3 since early August. Troops deployed with individual arms and equipment by air from Robert Gray Army Airfield at Ft. Hood, TX. They would be issued equipment such as M1A1 Abrams tanks and M2A2 Bradley Fighting Vehicles prepositioned in the Kuwait theater.
On 19 September (Upper Right), the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 1st Cavalry Division arrived at Kuwait City International Airport. They and the nearly 1,100 soldiers already here with TF 1-9 became the main body of TF KUWAIT, commanded by the Third US Army, Ft. McPherson, Ga.
The 3rd Brigade was no stranger to Kuwait or the hash environment of desert training. It was here during operations DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM. Immediately after landing, the 3rd Brigade began drawing prepositioned equipment and after only six hours in country, the soldiers were moving out to locations just twenty five kilometers south of the Iraq border.
The 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry deployed to Kuwait in mid-February 1997 for Intrinsic Action 97-01. The Task Force 1-7, of approximately 1,100 soldiers, was composed of the following elements:
"HHT", 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry
"A", "B", and "C" Troops, 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry
"B" Battery, 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
"C" Company, 20th Engineer Battalion
"A" Battery, 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery
545th Military Police Company
312th Military Intelligence Battalion
With all of its added slice elements, the squadron-turned-task force continued to lead the division. TF 1-7 Cavalry, the first division cavalry squadron to do an Intrinsic Action rotation, set the record for reception, staging, onward movement, and integration. Apache Troop rolled out, fully uploaded, from its staging base in Doha less than four hours after it touched down at Kuwait City. TF 1-7 was the first unit to set up a consolidated assembly area. In the past, units had split up into separate camps, but the single assembly area has greatly improved quality of life compared to earlier rotations. During the rotation, the task force artillery battery conducted a Paladin gunnery cycle and showed the Kuwaitis how to train in live-fire and simulated exercises, culminating in a highly successful force-on-force exercise and combined arms live-fire exercise.
During April, the TF 1-7 fired its best tank and Bradley gunneries ever. Thirteen crews distinguished their tanks with a squadron average of 884, including a perfect 1000-point crew. Thirty five crews distinguished their Bradleys with a squadron average of 939. In May, the squadron executed Cavalry Table XXII (a maneuver and live-fire exercise combining both tanks and Bradleys), and in finishing the rotation, the entire TF 1-7 deployed to the field to conduct a zone reconnaissance and execute screen and delay operations.
The advance party for Operation Task Force 2-12 deployed to Kuwait on 03 June 1997. The remainder of the organization deployed in mid June. Drawing their equipment, they quickly moved out to the desert to TAA Charger which and the troopers settled in beginning training in live fire exercises at the platoon, company and task force level and, individual and crew-served weapon ranges. TF 2-12, of approximately 1,200 troops, was composed of the following elements:
"HHC", 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment
"A" Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment
"D" Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment
"B" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment
"D" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment
"A" Battery, 3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
"A" Company, 91st Engineer Battalion
15th Forward Support Battalion
4th Platoon, 545th Military Police Company
2nd Platoon, "B" Battery, 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery
312th Military Intelligence Detachment
Following 120 days of extensive training and live fire exercises, TF 2-12 returned to Ft. Hood in October.
The 3rd Brigade deployed Task Force 2-7 to Kuwait in May 1998 for Operation INTRINSIC ACTION 98-02. This deployment was part of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, in response to increased tensions along the Iraq-Kuwait border. The Task Force of approximately 1,100 soldiers was composed of the following elements:
"HHC", 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment
"A" Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment
"D" Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment
"A" Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment
"D" Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment
"B" Company, 8th Engineer Battalion
"C" Battery, 2nd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
215th Forward Support Battalion
Upon arrival, TF 2-7 drew all of their prepositioned equipment in less than three hours, and were in position at the forward area in less than fifteen hours and ready for combat operations. The 1,100 soldier TF 2-7 executed Level I Gunnery, Gunnery Situational Tactical Exercise (STX) Lanes and a TF Movement to Contact/Live File. Following completion of training, the TF 2-7 turned in all equipment and redeployed to Ft. Hood in August.
The Task Force 1-9 deployed to Kuwait in April 2000 for Operation DESERT SPRING 00-01 that gave the soldiers an opportunity to sharpen their fighting skills. TF 1-9 was composed of the following elements:
"HHC", 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment
"A" Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry
"B" Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry
"B" Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry
"C" Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry
"B" Battery, 2nd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
"A" Company, 20th Engineer Battalion
3rd Platoon, 68th Chemical Company (DECON)
5th Platoon. 545th Military Police Company
4th Platoon, "D" Company, 312th Military Intelligence Battalion (GSR)
Task Force 2-5, consisting of about 1,000 Troopers including attached support units from other 1st Cavalry Division units, deployed to Kuwait in December 2000 for INTRINSIC ACTION 01-01. The advance party arrived on 07 December to prepare for the garrison of TF 2-5 in a well fortified Kabal (an enclave or base camp) in the Kuwait desert only a few miles from the Iraq border, but many miles from the nearest Kuwait town or other defense forces. TF 2-5 was composed of the following elements:
"HHC" 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"A" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"B" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"D" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"D" Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry
"A" Company, 20th Engineer Battalion
2nd Platoon, "A" Battery, 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery
Decon Platoon, 68th Chemical Company
"A" Battery. 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
115th Forward Support Battalion (-)
"A" Company, 312th Military Intelligence Battalion (-)
6th Platoon, 545th Military Police Company
Enlisted Terminal Attack Controllers (ETAC), 1st Cavalry Division
Task Force Black Jack consisting of about 1,900 Troopers including attached support units from other 1st Cavalry Division units and III Corps soldiers, deployed to Kuwait in late November 2001 for Operation DESERT SPRING 03-01 in a continuing showing that the United States is committed to the stability in that part of the world. TF Black Jack was composed of the following elements:
"HHC" 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"A" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"B" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"D" Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
"D" Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry
"A" Company, 20th Engineer Battalion
2nd Platoon, "A" Battery, 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery
Decon Platoon, 68th Chemical Company
"A" Battery. 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery
115th Forward Support Battalion (-)
"A" Company, 312th Military Intelligence Battalion (-)
6th Platoon, 545th Military Police Company
Enlisted Terminal Attack Controllers (ETAC), 1st Cavalry Division
Following completion of training, TF Black Jack turned in all equipment and began preparations for redeployment to Ft. Hood in late April 2002.
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