Reaper’s North Team calls in an airstrike on an insurgent stronghold in Karabilah during target softening ops the week before Operation Spear. See the Target Softening draft chapter for the full story.
Category Archives: Operation Spear
Scout-Sniper operations
I’ve posted drafts of two chapters covering 3/2’s ScoutSniper Platoon (SSP). The first is a short profile of the SSP, which went by the callsign “Reaper”. The second describes several recon & surveillance operations in May and June of 2005. It ends with a dramatic mission on 11 Jun 05, where two Reaper teams infiltrated into the insurgent-held city of Karabilah. This mission was hugely successful, and helped prepare the battlespace for Operation Spear which came just a week later.
Reaper v1.4 (Platoon profile)
Note: Due to the nature of what ‘Target Softening’ covers, there are several places where names, quotes and photos are currently blanked out, waiting on specific permissions to be given. I felt that would be prudent in this case. Hopefully I will have those permissions soon.
Angel on My Shoulder.Really good article by Ed Marek, about Marines in Fallujah. Has an excellent section on snipers. Not sure where to put this yet, so stashing it here…
Remembering Adam Crumpler, KIA 18 June 2005
Update (17jun18) – The chapters on Operation Spear have been finished for some time. The first is Tip of the Spear, which covers Day 1 and the middle of Day 2 of the operation. The 2nd is The Hard Edge, which starts with the action that led to the loss of LCpl Adam Crumpler.
Update (10jul17) – I’ve got the draft section as complete as possible right now, and I’m pretty comfortable with it. The eye witnesses I’ve interviewed have all approved it, so I’m ready to share. This was a challenge for me as a writer, emotionally and technically. A brave young Marine died, and by writing about it I realized I was creating a monument of sorts; to honor him, the men who went into battle with him, and his family. I wanted to make sure I got the details right and that I treated this incident with respect. I hope I’ve accomplished that. It will be part of a larger chapter about Operation Spear, which I’m still slogging away on. There will be sections before and after this that put things into context.
(16jun17) – For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been writing an account of the engagement in Karabilah, during Operation Spear, that resulted in the death of LCpl Adam Crumpler. In a few days it will be the anniversary of that date, 18 June 2005.
Writing about this has been a hard task, and I have proceeded carefully to treat the event with as much accuracy, fidelity and respect as possible. In doing so, I have interviewed several Marines who were there, and they have shared with me their detailed first-hand accounts of what happened, and why. They’ve shared very personal feelings, and the emotional impact the event has had on them. I am grateful, and honored, by the confidence they have shown in me to tell the story.
With their ongoing input, I am still editing and refining the section. I am not sure when I’ll be ready to post it here, but that is what I’d like to do–when it’s appropriate.
Also, I’m still searching out members of Kilo Co, 1st Platoon, especially those in 1st Squad who were with Adam as they cleared that house. If someone was there, and wants to add to my understanding of what happened, I’d like to talk to you.
In the meantime, I just want to remember and honor a brave Marine who gave his life in his country’s service, and literally placed himself in the line of fire to protect his squad-mates and friends. May he Rest in Peace, and may God bless his family and loved ones.
Semper Fi…
–Ajax
Grunt-level video of Spear
This is a really interesting video, clearly taken by a Marine from either 3/2 or 3/25 (I’m still trying to figure out which), showing the operation up close and personal. Among YouTube war videos, it’s unique in that it’s over an hour long, and doesn’t have a bunch of distracting edits or advertising. It also shows many interesting aspects of the operation, and what it’s like to be a grunt pushing through an Iraqi city infested by insurgents.
For viewers who were there, this may conjure up memories of the event. If anyone knows the guys in this squad, or has info on the video, let me know.
And for non-Marines who watch this with patience and attentiveness, it reveals fascinating details. For example, listen to the Squad Leader’s mission brief (in the dark) at 10:53, as he readies his men for action. See a tank demolish a building at 28:55 and watch how Marines do room clearing, starting at 47:50.
Note: The first 10 minutes show a large sandstorm sweeping over Al-Asad so you may want to skip that.
Oh, and high-level language warning. These are Marines, unfiltered…
–Ajax
Update (13jan17): I found out this was 3/2’s Lima Co. I thought they were at Al-Asad pulling base security for the whole deployment, but in fact they sent some elements to be in Operation Spear. My source knows the guys at the start of the video. So, I learned a new dimension there and will try to find out more about what 3/2 Lima did.
Ops with Iraqi SOF in Al-Qaim?
(Turns out they weren’t SOF. See the last update below)
Just ran across an intriguing photo. Found it on a Facebook profile. The caption reads:
“A break with Iraqi Special Forces Operation Spear OIF 3”. It brings up some interesting things:
First, it shows Iraqi troops working alongside 3/2 in June 2005 during Op Spear. I wasn’t aware that 3/2 was operating with Iraqi troops that early. I thought that came later, in Aug/Sep. So, more to learn on that score…
Second, the caption says these guys (in the chocolate chip uniforms) are “Iraqi Special Forces”, not regular troops or Iraqi National Guard (ING). If that’s correct, I wonder what the operational relationship was. Did they just happen to be holed up in the same house when the photo was taken? Did Kilo Co. have some SOF element embedded with them for Operation Spear? And if so, there would likely have been US SOF with them. Who would that have been? (see update below).
There’s a whole parallel history of SOF operations in the Al-Qaim area, concurrent with Marine operations. And there is actually quite a bit of publicly available info on this. But does this photo represent a small piece of that? I’ll be rooting around to find out more.
–Ajax
Update (9jan17): OK, here’s some confirmation. Found a photo and caption in the book “Hearts and Mines: With the Marines in al-Anbar, a Story of Psychological Operations”. Another photo showing “Iraqi Special Forces”, operating with the Marines.
Caption reads:
U.S. Marines assigned to 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, patrol the streets with Iraqi Special Forces soldiers, while conducting offensive operations in the city of Karabila, Iraq, during Operation Spear, June 17, 2005. (USMC photo).
Update (13jan17): Looks like this was incorrect. I’ve had a couple of 3/2 sources tell me the guys they worked with were just regular Iraqi troops, not Special Forces. The acronym commonly used was Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), which can easily get transmuted into ‘Iraqi Special Forces’. So, another example of guys who were on the ground setting things straight.
Bastards & Brothers 