3rd Brigade 82nd Airborne Division (Vietnam)

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FORT BRAGG, N.C. (AP) – The nine U.S. soldiers killed when a truck bomb exploded next to their patrol base in Iraq were all paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division, the division said Tuesday. Twenty of their colleagues were wounded in the attack.

Maj. Tom Earnhardt, a spokesman for the division at Fort Bragg, said it was the highest number of casualties for the division since the Iraq war began.

It was also the single deadliest attack on ground forces since Dec. 1, 2005, when a roadside bomb killed 10 Marines and wounded 11 on a foot patrol near Fallujah. An insurgent group that includes al-Qaida in Iraq claimed responsibility, according to an Internet-posted statement Tuesday.

The soldiers were members of the 5th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, Earnhardt said. A civilian interpreter was also wounded in Monday’s explosion.

“Fifteen of the wounded were superficial and they were treated on the spot and returned to duty,” Earnhardt said. “Five were evacuated to a military hospital, but none of the five have life-threatening injuries.”

Earnhardt said the unit deployed in August to Iraq. It is one of three of the division’s four brigade combat teams now in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The identities of the soldiers killed Tuesday were not immediately released. Earnhardt said the families were still being notified.

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I sit here at my desk, having difficulty bearing this loss – I am once again reminded of the sacrifices that our paratroopers continually, and voluntarily, make for their country and for their brothers. Please honor them and find some way to provide support to their families.

Ron

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 15:04:17 -0500 

Two weeks ago, as I was starting my sixth month of duty in Iraq ,  I was forced to return to the USA for surgery for an injury I sustained prior to my deployment. With luck, I’ll return to Iraq to  finish my tour. 

I left Baghdad and a war that has every indication that we are winning, to return to a demoralized country much like the one I returned to in 1971 after my tour in Vietnam . Maybe it’s because I’ll turn 60 years old in just four months, but I’m tired: 

• I’m tired of spineless politicians, both Democrat and Republican who lack the courage, fortitude, and character to see these difficult tasks through. 
• I’m tired of the hypocrisy of politicians who want to rewrite history when the going gets tough.
• I’m tired of the disingenuous clamor from those that claim they ‘Support the Troops’ by wanting them to ‘Cut and Run’ before victory is achieved. 
• I’m tired of a mainstream media that can only focus on car bombs and casualty reports because they are too afraid to leave the safety of their hotels to report on the courage and success our brave men and women are having on the battlefield.
• I’m tired that so many Americans think you can rebuild a dictatorship into a democracy over night. 
• I’m tired that so many ignore the bravery of the Iraqi people to go to the voting booth and freely elect a Constitution and soon a permanent Parliament. 
• I’m tired of the so called ‘Elite Left’ that prolongs this war by giving aid and comfort to our enemy, just as they did during the Vietnam War. 
• I’m tired of antiwar protesters showing up at the funerals of our fallen soldiers. A family who’s loved ones gave their life in a just and noble cause, only to be cruelly tormented on the funeral day by cowardly protesters is beyond shameful. 
• I’m tired that my generation, the Baby Boom — Vietnam generation, who have such a weak backbone that they can’t stomach seeing the difficult tasks through to victory. 
• I’m tired that some are more concerned about the treatment of captives than they are the slaughter and beheading of our citizens and allies. 
• I’m tired that when we find mass graves it is seldom reported by the press, but mistreat a prisoner and it is front page news. 
• Mostly, I’m tired that the people of this great nation didn’t
  learn from history that there is no substitute for Victory. 

Sincerely,

Joe Repya, 
Lieutenant Colonel, U. S. Army 
101st Airborne Division 

This needs to get all over the U S A.

 

Panther Team, 

I have informed our Paratroopers here in Iraq about the extension of our current one-year combat tour, and I wanted to let you know what the new policy means for the Panther team.  We expect that the current length of our extension will be 90 days.  We have not received official orders extending our unit, but from all the indicators, to include Mr. Gates press conference on 11 April, it is fairly obvious we will be in Iraq for 15 months.  I have cautioned our paratroopers about not focusing on a return date.  We will return home when our mission is complete.   

I am sure many of you followed the President’s speech intently on Jan. 11 and Secretary of Defense Gates statement on 11 April, discussing the need for an extension of combat brigades in Iraq.  As Mr. Gates stated, the Army is stretched thin with its numerous commitments throughout the world, and this new policy will give our Paratroopers and their family long term predictability.  This policy will ensure 12 months of home station dwell time, giving our Paratroopers time with their families, and the unit time to refit and retrain for war.  The hope is that eventually, as conditions allow, the Army will be able to reduce deployment times to 12 months deployed/12 months home-station, and finally to 12 months-deployed/24 months home-station.  The Army and the nation will continue to ask for our sacrifice and commitments during these difficult times.     

The President has stated the costs of failure if we left Iraq in chaos and turmoil.  Terrorists would have a free reign here as they did in Afghanistan prior to 9/11.  The terrorists could use Iraq as a training ground to plan terrorist attacks against our home soil.  This fight is for more than the future of Iraq, but it is also for the security of our country.  The President has drawn a line in the sand and is committed to victory in Iraq.  We are at a crucial turning point in the history of our nation, and the sacrifices of those who serve here now will never be forgotten.   

Our Paratroopers in Salah ad Din and the 5-73 in Diyala are playing an important role in the security plan for Baghdad.  I realize many of you watch the media reports about what is going on in Iraq and might have a negative perception of what is happening here.  Many pundits and politicians question the validity of the President’s plan.  They question the will of the Iraqi people to provide security for themselves.  Be assured the pundits will never stop talking and second-guessing every decision.  I want to let you know we have a true partner in the Iraqis we work with here, and they want the same things for Iraq that we want.  They want a safe and stable Iraq, in which they are responsible for their security so we and other coalition forces can go home. 

We have made a great deal of progress here with our Iraqi allies; from hunting down the terrorists to providing basic services and improving the infrastructure for Iraq.    True to the Paratrooper spirit, the Panthers are on point.  Our nation and our President have called on us, and we will not fail. 

For the latest info on extensions log onto the Panther FRG website http://www.armyfrg.org/. 

                All the Way!! H-Minus!!
                Panther 6,
                Colonel Bryan Owens

Panther Team,  

The Panthers have been busy since the President announced the troop surge in Baghdad on 11 Jan.  As many of you know, there have been many shake-ups in the chain of command here, and 21,000 new troops have started to flow into Baghdad and Anbar provinces.  Iraq is at a critical point in its history, and the President has decided to commit the necessary forces to stop the cycle of sectarian violence in Baghdad.  Once security is established in Baghdad, Coalition Forces in concert with their Iraqi partners will hold and help to rebuild the city.  Although we are not directly involved in operations in Baghdad, we have been playing a major supporting role.   

Starting at the end of January, our engineers and their Iraqi counterparts began constructing robust checkpoints along the major highways leading in and out of the province.  We have also been establishing hasty traffic control points and locating and denying insurgent safe havens. 

An important part of this process has been the success of our Iraqi security forces.  In the past several months they have taken more and more initiative.  Their engineers constructed some of the checkpoints in the province – the Iraqi soldiers and policemen are manning most of the checkpoints along with our forces – and they have captured key insurgent suspects.  Just recently we had two large-scale operations where more than 500 Iraqi forces conducted operations outside of Balad and in Bayji.  These operations resulted in the capture of 32 insurgents and the capture of weapon systems.  They are making progress every day, and they will soon be ready to conduct the majority of operations in this province.

In Bayji, LTC Scott Harris and the Paratroopers of Task Force 1 Panther have been making great strides in stopping corruption at the Bayji Oil Refinery.  By partnering with the 4th Iraqi army Division and the 2nd Iraqi Strategic Infrastructure Brigade, they are continuing to execute operations that will take money out of the pocket of insurgents and greatly help the Iraqi economy.  After their recent operations in the town of Siniyah where they effectively denied insurgents a safe haven, 1 Panther built on their success and took the fight to the enemy in Bayji.  By all accounts, the people of Bayji are much friendlier and supportive of Coalition Forces.  They have been turning in insurgents and terrorists at higher frequencies than ever before.

In Tikrit, Task Force Loyalty recently shut down a series of insurgent finance cells.  LTC Barry Di Ruzza and is his Paratroopers have also established a presence in Wynot, Ad-Dawr and Ouja, Saddam’s home town.  In a recent operation in Wynot and Ouja they were able to capture 50 terrorists, including a bomb-manufacturing cell leader. After months of absence from the town of Ad-Dawr, Loyalty established a robust presence and started working with the Iraqi police to smoke out the insurgents.  The enemy struck quick and destroyed the police station and killed 8 brave Iraqi police officers.  Not so quickly undone, the Iraqi police rebuilt their police station within days and have started to take the fight to the insurgent with a new sense of urgency.

In Samarra, tensions ran high as we approached the anniversary of the Golden mosque bombing on February 12.  LTC Viet Luong and the Task Force 2 Panther Team were on point, and the terrorists in Samarra could not take advantage of the situation.   Through relentless patrolling and joint missions with the Iraqi police within the city, 2 Panther has seen improvements in the professionalism of the Iraqi police and in the people’s confidence.  Unfortunately, 2 Panther lost 7 great Paratroopers in a complex IED explosion outside of Samarra.  That was the single greatest one-day loss for the 82nd Airborne Division since the global war on terror began.

The Paratroopers of 5-73, Task Force Headhunter, in Diyala have had a tough fight since the beginning, and they have been behind some major operations that have led to the capture and death of key Al-Qaeda figures in Iraq.  Their actions have been essential in securing the Iran-Iraq border and stemming the flow of weapons from Iran to insurgents in Iraq.  LTC Drew Poppas and his Troopers have been doing a marvelous job under the command of 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, and although they are under a different headquarters, they are still a part of the Panther family.

The rest of our Paratroopers from our support battalion to the BCT headquarters have been doing a great job in supporting the Paratroopers on the ground.  I am proud of all our Paratroopers.

In an effort to keep families better informed we have created a new Family Readiness Group website, where everyone will be able to get the most accurate and up-to-date information about the brigade.   The URL for the Web site is as follows:  http://www.armyfrg.org/.   After accessing this page, you can register by clicking the “register now” link.  After you are registered select “3 BCT, 82nd ABN (505 PIR),” and after following a few simple steps, you will be ready to access the Panther FRG webpage.

Our efforts and achievements here have not been easy or cheap, and we stand indebted to the great Paratroopers who gave up their life in the service of their country –
SGT William M. Sigua, C/1-505, January 31, SPC. Ryan M. Bell, C/2-505, March 5, SSG Justin M. Estes, C/2-505, March 5, PFC Christian Cory Kosters, C/2-505, March 5, SGT Andrew C. Perkins, C/2-505, March 5,. SPC Justin A. Rollins, C/2-505, March 5, SSG Robert M. Stanley, C/2-505, March 5, SGT Daniel E. Woodcock, B/2-505, March 11, SGT Joshua M. Boyd, HHC/2-505, March 14, SFC John S. Stephens, HHC/BSTB, March 15, and SFC Benjamin L. Sebban, , HHT/5-73, March 17.  Our thoughts and prayers are with all the family members who have lost loved ones.  They truly are the greatest American heroes, and we are greatly indebted to them.  Thank you for your thoughts and prayers, and as always you can rest assured the PANTHERS ARE ON POINT! 

ATW! H-Minus!!  P6