This presentation is a concise top level overview of Gulf War Syndrome.
33 years later, we are still fighting the war.
Ironically, then President George H W Bush signed into law HR 556, Agent Orange Act on February 6th, 1991.
Vietnam Veterans had been exposed as early as 1960 thru the fall of Saigon in April of 1975 when the last American troops evacuated Vietnam.
They continue to seek medical help, compensation and disability.
The M3 Bradley Cavalry Fighting Vehicle (CFV) is an American tracked armored reconnaissance vehicle manufactured by BAE Systems Land and Armaments (formerly United Defense). A member of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle family, the M3 CFV is used by heavy armored cavalry units in the United States Army.
he M3 Bradley CFV is very similar to the M2 Bradley IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) and is fielded with the same two-man 25-mm Bushmaster Cannon turret with a coaxial M240C 7.62-mm machine gun. It only varies from the M2 in a few subtle ways and by role. The M3 is classified as an armored reconnaissance and scout vehicle and does away with the firing ports found in the M2 series. The M3 also carries more TOW missiles as well as more ammunition for its 25-mm and 7.62-mm guns.
The M3 Bradley Cavalry Fighting Vehicle in its original configuration in 1983.
The Bradley family as a whole was originally intended to support the M113 Armored Personnel Carrier (APC), but ended up replacing it in U.S. Army service altogether. Today, the Bradley is fielded in conjunction with the M1 Abrams series of main battle tanks and often accompanies infantry squads into combat. In the 1991 Persian Gulf War, Bradleys destroyed more enemy tanks than the M1 Abrams.[citation needed] Only three Bradleys were lost to enemy fire; however, at least 17 were lost to friendly fire. Improvements to the Bradley family have included enhanced identification features, as well as anti-tank missile countermeasures (for first generation wire-guided missiles only) and improved armor protection in the form of ERA.
Design
The troop compartment of the M3 Bradley CFV. Note the additional TOW ammunition in storage racks on the right side which replaced a row of benches for mounted infantry.
Concealment
All versions are equipped with two four-barreled M257 Grenade Launchers on the front of the turret for creating defensive smoke screens, chaff, and flares. It is also fitted with an engine smoke-generating system.
Armor
Armor for the hull and turret for all variants is steel, 5083 aluminum, and unique to the turret is 7039 aluminum.
NBC
The M3A1 variant introduced a gas particulate filter system.
Damage control
The M3A1 variant introduced a fire suppression system.
Mobility
The Bradley is highly capable in cross-country open terrain, in accordance with one of the main design objectives of keeping pace with the M1 Abrams. Whereas the M113 would float without much preparation, the Bradley was initially designed to float by deploying a flotation curtain around the vehicle. This caused some drownings due to failures during its first trials. Armor upgrades have negated this capability.[citation needed] The M3 Bradley was originally developed to accommodate a scout motorcycle. The idea was abandoned when it became apparent that the cycle's unprotected fuel tank could be hazardous to crew members.
Variants
M3 Bradleys in Operation Desert Storm
This model is essentially a re-stowed M2 Bradley. The passenger compartment was occupied by two troopers and more ammunition and missiles. Because it did not carry a squad, the firing ports were covered. The M3 retained the three periscopes between the cargo hatch and entry ramp and the periscopes along the left side of the vehicle, while those on the right side were covered over as they would have been inaccessible due to the TOW missile stowage rack.
M3A1
The M3A1 variant introduced a gas particulate filter system for NBC threats. Unlike the M2A1 Bradley, the NBC masks connected to the central filter for all five crewmen, instead of just the driver, gunner, and vehicle commander. This variant also introduced a fire suppression system. The three periscopes on the rear deck were omitted on the M3A1, and replaced by four periscopes in the cargo hatch itself.
M3A2
The M3A2 incorporated enhanced armor upgrades, such as the ability to mount explosive reactive armor, from the M2A2 Bradley. After live fire testing, seating and ammunition stowage arrangements were also changed, with the observers moved to a bench on the left side of the vehicle and the missile stowage rearranged to enhance safety. After the Gulf War, other improvements including an eye-safe carbon dioxide laser rangefinder, global positioning system and compass, missile countermeasure device, combat identification system, and thermal viewer for the driver were incorporated into the M3A2-ODS.
M3A3
The M3A3 model of the Bradley uses enhanced information and communication equipment, a central processing unit, and information displays for the vehicle commander and squad leader. The M3A3 is compatible with the inter-vehicular communication system of the M1A2 Abrams tank and AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter. The commander has an independent thermal viewer and a new integrated sight unit called the Improved Bradley Acquisition System (IBAS), which allows automatic gun adjustments, automatic boresighting, and tracking of dual targets. The roof is reinforced with titanium armor. Many M3A3s were converted from M3A2s.
M3A4
The M3A4 model of the Bradley is fitted with a new 675 horsepower (503 kW) engine. Electronic systems have been improved. Deliveries of upgraded vehicles commenced in 2020.
Table Of Varients
In 1998 there was a movie titled, "The Pentagon Wars" centering on the Bradley and what is known as "scope creep."
The movie mocked the BFV, however, time has told the Bradley has had an impressive track record, even surpassing the amount of kills compared to the M1 Abrams.
Similar to our favorite plane, the USAF A-10 Thunderbolt, the military has attempted - and failed - to replace the Bradley.
It also looks like the Bradley will outlive the M1 Abrams.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
February 24th, 1991 - February 28th, 1991
Operation Desert Sabre was the last offensive of the Persian Gulf War. It's also loosely synonymous with "the ground war" and "the 100 hour war."
In this phase, the Coalition marched into Kuwait to take control of the country. On February 24, the Coalition began a ground assault that was meant to penetrate deep into Kuwait and liberate Kuwait City. This would destroy Hussein's strategic reserve, the Republican Guard and the Iraqi heavy divisions. In the east, coalition troops under Saudi command attacked north into Kuwait. They eventually encircled Kuwait City and Iraqi forced were ejected or defeated. The regaining of Kuwait City forced enemy troops to retreat.
In only 100 hours of constant fighting, the U.N. Coalition gained impressive results against the Iraqi military. An estimated 1,300 tanks, 1,200 infantry fighting vehicles, 285 artillery pieces, and 100 air defense systems were destroyed. Coalition troops also captured nearly 22,000 men. Allied forces only lost 7 M1A1 Abrams tanks, 15 Bradley tanks, 2 armored personnel carriers, and 1 Apache helicopter. Only 22 allied men died in the process. At one of the most famous battles of Desert Sabre, The Battle of Medina Ridge, 300 Iraqi tanks were destroyed. This was an attempted ambush on Coalition soldiers. On February 27, most of the Iraqi soldiers were retreating or captured and the Republican Guard were defeated.
The "Highway of Death"
The Iraqi soldiers who had occupied Kuwait City were forced to retreat back to their home country. However, they also possessed all of their weapons they had used to wage war. Therefore, the United States saw it necessary to stop these troops with force. Pilots were ordered to bomb the transports to stop the men, and then bomb even more to ensure that they could not take weapons of mass destruction with them. This relentless attack continued for two days straight across 3 miles of the highway. When the bombing was finally over, thousands of vehicles were destroyed and hundreds dead. Although this may seem unethical, pilots claim that this retreat was not ordinary.
-Source Author unknown
Author's note:
I stumbled on "Operation Desert Sabre" when looking up the amount of US Troops in theater (700,000). Desert Sabre replaced the initial operational name of Desert Sword. I'm guessing the powers-that-be felt the word "sabre" would be more widely attributed to the European (Allied) spelling.
And from GlobaleSecurity:
The ground campaign, initially designated DESERT SWORD and subsequently designated DESERT SABRE, began on 24 February 1991. When ground operations started in earnest, coalition forces were poised along a line that stretched from the Persian Gulf westward 300 miles into the desert. Two corps covered about two-thirds of the line occupied by the huge multinational force.
The XVIII Airborne Corps, under Lt. Gen. Gary E. Luck, held the left, or western, flank and consisted of the 82d Airborne Division, the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), the 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized), the French 6th Light Armored Division, the 3d Armored Cavalry, and the 12th and 18th Aviation Brigades.
The Vll Corps, under Lt. Gen. Frederick M. Franks, Jr., was deployed to the right of the XVIII Airborne Corps and consisted of the 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized), the 1st Cavalry Division (Armored), the 1st and 3d Armored Divisions, the British 1st Armored Division, the 2d Armored Cavalry, and the 11th Aviation Brigade.
Three commands held the eastern one-third of the front.
Joint Forces Command North, made up of formations from Egypt, Syria, and Saudi Arabia and led by His Royal Highness Lt. Gen. Prince Khalid ibn Sultan, held the portion of the line east of Vll Corps.
To the right of these allied forces stood Lt. Gen. Walter E. Boomer's I Marine Expeditionary Force, which had the 1st (or Tiger) Brigade of the Army's 2d Armored Division as well as the 1st and 2d Marine Divisions.
Joint Forces Command East on the extreme right, or eastern, flank anchored the line at the Persian Gulf. This organization consisted of units from all six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Like Joint Forces Command North, it was under General Khalid's command.
General Schwarzkopf unleashed all-out attacks against Iraqi forces very early on 24 February at three points along the allied line. The main attack was designed to avoid most fixed defenses, drive deep into Iraq, envelop Iraqi forces from the west and attack and destroy Saddam Hussein's strategic reserve - Republican Guard armored and mechanized infantry divisions augmented by several other Iraqi Army heavy divisions. This wide left sweep was sometimes referred to as the " Hail Mary" plan.
XVIII Airborne Corps attacked in the west and deep into Iraq to control the east-west lines of communication along Highway 8 and cut off Iraqi forces in the Kuwait Theater of Operations. In the far west the French 6th Light Armored and the 101st Airborne Divisions started the massive western envelopment with a ground assault to secure the allied left flank and an air assault to establish forward support bases deep in Iraqi territory. In XVIII Corps' mission of envelopment, the 24th Infantry Division had the central role of blocking the Euphrates River valley to prevent the escape north of Iraqi forces in Kuwait and then attacking east in coordination with VII Corps to defeat the armor-heavy divisions of the Republican Guard Forces Command.
In the approximate center of the allied line, along the Wadi al Batin, Maj. Gen. John H. Tilelli, Jr.'s 1st Cavalry Division attacked north into a concentration of Iraqi divisions, whose commanders remained convinced that the coalition would use that and several other wadies as avenues of attack. VII Corps would conduct the main Coalition effort, attacking east of XVIII Airborne Corps and west of Wadi Al-Batin, driving to the north and then east to find, attack, and destroy the heart of President Saddam Hussein's ground forces, the armor-heavy Republican Guard divisions.
In the east two Marine divisions, with the Army's Tiger Brigade, and coalition forces under Saudi command attacked north into Kuwait. These forces held the enemy's tactical and operational forces in place by breaching Iraqi defenses in Kuwait and encircling Iraqi forces in the heel of Kuwait and Kuwait City. Once Kuwait City was encircled and Iraqi forces were ejected or defeated, Arab-Islamic forces would liberate Kuwait City.
Iraqi forces, often isolated in static defenses for long periods, were steadily demoralized by air and psychological operations along with the harsh conditions Accordingly, many Iraqis lost the will to resist by the time the ground operation began.
In 100 hours of combat XVIII Airborne Corps moved its lead elements 190 miles north into Iraq and then 70 miles east. By the time offensive operations were halted, XVIII Airborne Corps had completed its advance into Iraq, cutting off Iraqi retreat and helping with the Republican Guard's final destruction. The 24th Infantry Division with the 3rd ACR continued its attack to the east to block enemy withdrawal and completed the elimination of the Republican Guard.
In ninety hours of continuous movement and combat, VII Corps achieved impressive results against the best units of the Iraqi military. Franks' troops destroyed more than a dozen Iraqi divisions, an estimated 1,300 tanks, 1,200 infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, 285 artillery pieces, and 100 air defense systems, and captured nearly 22,000 men. At the same time, the best Iraqi divisions destroyed only 7 MlA1 Abrams tanks, 15 Bradleys, 2 armored personnel carriers, and 1 Apache helicopter. And while killing unknown thousands of enemy troops, VII Corps lost 22 soldiers killed in action. Due to the speed of the allied advance, the VII Corps began its attack ahead of schedule early in the afternoon on the twenty-fourth. Penetrating the minefields to their front, U.S. soldiers overran Iraqi positions within a few hours. The Iraqi troops-tired, hungry, and physically and psychologically battered-began surrendering in droves. The next day the 1st Armored Division quickly crushed the Iraqi 26th Infantry Division as VII Corps pivoted to the east. The 24th Infantry Division's heavy armor moved rapidly to exploit the initial air assaults of the 101st and 82d Airborne Divisions. Linking up with the 101st battle positions, the 24th Division moved the 200 miles north to the Euphrates River by noon on the twenty-sixth, blocking the Iraqi retreat. In the most decisive actions of the war, the VII Corps, moving directly east with three heavy divisions abreast, attacked the elite Iraqi Republican Guard units. Late in the afternoon on the twenty-sixth, the VII Corps hit elements of the Tawakalna Division in the battle of 73 Easting. In quick succession, the 2d ACR, 1st and 3d Armored Divisions, and the 1st Infantry Division smashed through the Tawakalna Division. Overwhelming the enemy with accurate tank fire and assisted by deadly Apache helicopter gunships, the VII Corps hit the Medina Division in the early afternoon of the twenty-seventh. At Medina Ridge, an attempted Iraqi ambush of the 1st Armored Division ended with the destruction of over 300 enemy tanks.
During four days of combat Tiger Brigade task forces destroyed or captured 181 tanks, 148 armored personnel carriers, 40 artillery pieces, and 27 antiaircraft systems while killing an estimated 263 enemy and capturing 4,051 prisoners of war, all at a cost of 2 killed and 5 wounded.
The battles of DESERT STORM soon wound down against crumbling resistance. With the VII Corps poised to crush the remainder of the Republican Guard units, only the declaration of a cease-fire saved the Iraqis. When offensive operations ended, the Coalition faced the beaten remnants of a once-formidable foe. Coalition ground forces, with tremendous support from air and naval forces, had defeated the Iraqi Army. Coalition armies stood on the banks of the Euphrates River, stretched across the Iraqi and Kuwaiti deserts and patrolled a liberated Kuwait City.