A Combat Story Related 4

****************************Trigger Warning Contains Violence*********************


Picking up from what had happened last, we finally reached a point where the brave British SAS guys could make their way safely to where they needed to be. Some more SAS personnel joined them, but there was no time to get to know anyone. We were about two blocks from where I would demonstrate how to call in a strike and lase a target to the Delta Force guys we had liaised with. All the American personnel moved on, and the SAS guys went to take care of their objective. It is worth mentioning that I would later encounter a couple of those guys in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia when we were pulled out after that first night of operations. For the record, it must be said that no one can put alcohol away like the British.

We have designated scouts in a Ranger Squad, and the Delta Force Team also does. So, we got within sight of the target and let the scouts fan out and find us a good location to observe and work from. Looking through night vision and binoculars, I could already tell this was a valid target. There were just a few hints to this: 1.) A large antiaircraft turret was Russian-made on the roof of this building, firing a stream of ammo up into the night. 2.) There were trucks coming and going armed, and from my vantage point, looked to be Republican Guard soldiers. 3.) They were carrying ammo crates out of this building and loading them onto the trucks. By our training, that's three strikes. You're to be taken out.
By now, all the scouts had returned and found us a good place to set up. When doing this task in the military, rooftops can be your friend. They are elevated positions where people are usually not running around. We had the flat top of a building across the way, so we followed the scouts, who showed us how to get up there. We simply went up a fire escape on the side of the building. You want to be cautious and not draw any undue attention. It is dark, but stuff explodes overhead all over the place. You get up top and move low, and let the guys that are handling it move the equipment to the forward position facing your target. My Sergeant, the Second Lieutenant of the Delta Force Squad, and his Sergeant move up in a prone position to where the equipment is.

My sergeant had assessed that this building contained what was most likely an underground command and control center. You make the assessment based on several things, primarily that the communications rigging was rather elaborate for this building. There is another way to check this, which we did. This information is not generally discussed unless you do this type of military operation. We also knew from information from the original plans that this building had a rather extensive basement area.
I explained to the Second lieutenant that, in my judgment, since it was such a large complex, with a most likely fortified basement housing Command and Control and a sizeable Russian-made AA turret firing automatically on the roof, the best choice here would be a GBU28 bunker-busting bomb. I looked at my sergeant, and he was shaking his head.
The 2nd Lt.'s training on the ordinance was good, as he was familiar with it. I will give a brief description, but you can watch these things being used on YouTube and such. They are very effective for large hardened targets. They are later guided bombs that carry a 4,000 lb. warhead, which I can tell you is quite a bang.
One uses several different kinds of equipment. You hold a laser at a critical point on a target, trigger it, and the smart ordinance is led into that specific site. I cannot discuss the different types of units, as some are not made public to this day. It is simple to say it is a device, and since we are doing night operations, you want a wavelength that does not give your position away. So, no, it does not look like Hugh the Borg shining a laser off a roof; it is in a spectrum not visible to the human eye. Our equipment allowed us to see it; the targeting computer onboard the GBU28 could also see it.
I spent several minutes explaining the equipment and showing them what I judged to be an accurate critical point. Then, I lit it up so they could see. Then, you give them the equipment and allow them to do it. There will never be as good a teacher as actual experience. Until now, I had only called ordinance strikes during practice and training scenarios. Time to go to work, I told the 2nd Lt. I would call command and set up the action. Then he could follow the same procedure, and they would see what our new stuff could do.
You use a scrambled satellite phone to call strategic command; the call goes directly to them. Seconds after you call, they know who and where you are.

I got them on the phone and gave my identification call number, and you have a code generated for authentication. You know some of these guys from training, so they know your voice and accent. The 2nd Lt painted the target. I told them what we were looking at and my recommendation for a GBU28 strike that we were with, a 2nd LT. who gave his ID and code. There is sometimes a short wait as they verify the assets in the area and compare what you tell them to their assessments. We were both told it was a go and on its way. Approximate time seven minutes.

This is seven long minutes, but everyone is settling down because we have an LAE on the way. If you are wondering, some of the tactical guys are gunny, but that means a Large Assed Explosion. There will be debris flying everywhere, so you take cover and give the best cover position to the guy painting the target. That is the 2nd Lt. in this case. Command lets us know this ordinance has finally been released, so you hang up and wait. In short order, you have a 4,000 bomb coming down on your painted position at or near terminal velocity. These bombs correct course with flaps, so there is some air resistance, but they are booking when they hit.

That was when that building went Kaplow! It was a really powerful explosion, and even from a covered position with distance, you felt the shockwave run over you.
As you wait for the smoke and debris to clear, it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that you are done here. You say goodbye to the 2nd Lt. and his crew, climb down, and they head in the direction they are going; your team has its next task. So, off into the night, we went again, with a smoking crater of a building behind us. This was one of the longest nights of my life, and it wasn't over yet.

https://mysupportforums.org/picture....ictureid=68529

Well done!!

Oh my!! Again, so well-written and captivating! It felt as though I was there - you transported me...

Thank you for sharing!