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News |
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This website will report on, and cover,the activities of
the 125 Marines in Bravo Battery. If you have any news concerning
your Marine that you'd like to share, sing out and let us know
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January 13 |
Vote And Die:
Understandably, American casualties in Iraq get most
of the news coverage in the United States, but Iraqi police and troops have
been taking 80 percent of the losses since the interim Iraqi government
took over last June 28th. Many of the Iraqi dead have been due to car
bombs, and 181 of those have been used in the last six months. Not all
those car bombs involved suicide bombers (only 38 percent did). But
those bombs caused some 3,000 casualties, over 90 percent of them Iraqis and a
third of them fatal. The peak month for car bombs was last November,
when there were 48. Because many of the car bomb workshops were overrun in
Fallujah that month, the number of car bombs fell to 27 in December, but
is slowly increasing this month.
The frequent use of car bombs has done little to thin out the chaotic
traffic in Iraqi cities. Considering the way Iraqis drive, and that
their accident rate is several times what it is in the United States, that's
probably a reasonable decision. American soldiers have noted that
driving without your seat belt is more dangerous than the threat of roadside
bombs or car bombs. Iraqi gossip still likes to blame all the car bombs on
Americans, but the chatter in the coffee shops and blogs tells a
different tale. Iraqis know who is doing the bombings, and the debate is over how
hard should the government lean on the Sunni community, and how soon.
Iraqis feel that soon the Sunnis will no longer be a major threat to the
government. Iraqis take pride in the growing number of Iraqi police and
army units that can storm into a house or neighborhood and carry out a
raids and arrest, with no shooting and no casualties. "Just like the
Americans," is the phrase you hear muttered, half in resignation, half
in pride. Saddam had soldiers who could do raids like that, although they
would often kill a few bystanders just for the terror effect. And the
people they took away were usually never seen again. Now those efficient
soldiers of Saddam are making car bombs, and slipping threatening notes
under the doors of election officials. "Vote and Die" is the phrase the
opposition is using. But most Iraqi election officials are standing
their ground, and many Iraqis, especially those living near Sunni Arab
neighborhoods or towns (nearly half the population), look forward to
election day with dread. That's because voting could mean exposure to
another car bomb, and not voting means giving Saddam's thugs another
victory. It's a no-win situation. But it's also a no-lose situation.
Over 14 million Iraqis are registered to vote, at over 3,000 voting
locations. Over 100,000 Iraqi police and soldiers will be guarding the voting
places, along with thousands of local men armed with their AK-47s each household
is allowed to keep (but not take outside, a rule that is often flouted
for emergencies like this.) If the anti-government forces make a major
effort to attack many polling places, they will spread themselves thin and even
up the odds. This will mean more failed attacks, and more dead Baath
Party and al Qaeda members. "Vote and Die" has many meanings.
CWO5 Roussell |
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December 27 |
FORWARD OPERATING BASE MAHMUDIYAH, Iraq (Dec. 27, 2004) -- Within the wooden walls of
the old chicken factory that serves as the headquarters for 2nd Battalion, 24th Marines, there is
only one thing that can make a Marine jump no matter how many times it's heard. It's not the sound
of incoming mortars or a roadside bomb in the distance, but rather the heart-pounding, earth-shaking
thunder of the Marines' own artillery arm. Bravo Battery, 1st Battalion, 10th Marines, is the M-198
155 mm artillery section of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Positioned at FOB Iskandariyah in
support of Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion 2nd Marines, and here in support of 2/24, the battery
was divided at the start of its deployment to cover a larger area of operations. Each section was
made self sufficient, with its own communication and fire direction center. "They tell you you'll
probably never do split operations," said 1st Lt. Joseph P. Steinfels, 27, a Park Ridge, Ill., native
and assistant fire direction officer with Bravo Battery. "We divided the battery to cover as much
of the MEU's area of operations as possible," said Steinfels. "So no matter where something is going
down, we can counterstrike enemy mortar fire, fire illumination rounds, or take something out."
Bravo Battery has proved itself decisively in the past half year. Whether it's hitting a barrel
positioned in the middle of a field during practice artillery shoots in North Carolina, or
supporting infantry operations in Iraq, they continue to demonstrate how artillery fire is a key
element to battling a counter-insurgency. "The objective is to train the guns on them and fire
before they have a chance to pack up and leave," said Steinfels, explaining the battery's mission
during an insurgent mortar attack. "It takes us a very small amount of time to prepare to counter-fire."
Using technology to detect the insurgent's position, Marines in the fire direction control center
map out the enemy round's point of origin. Everything from meteorological data to the rotation of
the earth is calculated, configured into a grid coordinate, then forwarded to the gun line. On the
gun line, a recorder takes down the data from the FDC, then verbally relays the information to the
Marines on his gun. The gunner and assistant gunner then adjust the sights to fit the given
coordinates. The section chief, whose job is to oversee all aspects of firing, will have the
howitzer adjusted or moved if necessary. The ammunition team, usually composed of three Marines,
prepares the right fuses, powder and type of ammunition. The round is then loaded, and the
number-one gunner pulls the lanyard. This usually happens all within 30 seconds.
As far as ammunition is concerned, the M-198 Howitzer fires a wide variety of rounds, from illumination
rounds, which light up the sky at night, to copperheads, laser guided artillery rounds with a target
diameter of less then an inch. With so many capabilities the guns and their teams bring to bear,
it's no wonder that Bravo Battery here is such a key element to 2/24's combined-arms power.
According to Sgt. Kirk A. Sparks, 22, a Burlington, Wash., native and the howitzer section chief,
the Marines relish every chance they get to employ the "King of Battle." "When given clearance to
fire, the job falls into our hands, and we do the best we can to drop it on their laps as soon as
possible."
MEU Site |
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December 21 |
Twas the week before Christmas....and there are plenty of mice stirring. Probably more
than most of us realized it would, the weather has turned in Iraq. It now dips into the low 30s
nightly and the mice have sought refuge in our bunkers for the same reason we have....heaters! The
newest sport is........mice catching. As we get nearer and nearer to Christmas I want to wish all
the families and friends of the Battery, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! This
holiday will be one we all remember. I am proud of the Marines as the mood remains high. Everytime I feel
that they cannot impress me more, they invariably do. The amount of shooting has gone down as a result
of the diminished open insurgent activity but the Marines continue to be extremely focused. I attribute
that to the non-commisioned officers. The NCOs have found their niche and they are doing as all good NCOs
do, they are taking care of the Marines and running the daily operations of the battery. I know you will
see a difference in your Marine when he returns home. Don't worry, the one thing I have not seen is any
loss of personality, in fact we are seeing more personality as everyone's true character is showing through.
What I have also seen is the sharpening of their minds, self-discipline and resolve. I was asked in the
mess hall this evening, "How many?" and my answer was, "How many, what?" The question was, how many days
until we leave? My answer was truthfully, "I don't know". Honestly, we do know the scheduled dates and the
light is getting slightly larger at the end of the tunnel, but it is not something the battery is overly
concerned with. These Marines are here to take on the enemies of the United States and they will continue
to do that until the day they are told to board a plane and go home. I know you all miss your Marines and
want them home and they want the same. But I can tell in the way that they conduct themselves that they
would rather be here fighting to keep you safe until which point they are "properly relieved of their posts".
We know that this will be an especially difficult time, so from all the Marines of Bravo Battery, Happy Holidays.
We love you.
Captain Robert Heffner |
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November 22 |
No doubt all of you have been following the news of the Marines in Fallujah. First,
if you were wondering if all the artillery shown on Fox News was us; unfortunately it was not our Battery.
The media does not provide a very detailed coverage of every unit, so let me explain what Bravo Battery is
doing : We have divided the battery into two sections, and our guns support the Marines of BLT 1/2 and
TF 2/24 in two locations. Both of these cities are critical to the events in Fallujah because our bases sit
on the major roads that the insurgents use to move around the country. Also, we sit in the southern region
of the Sunni Triangle, and it is the Sunni's who have the most to lose in the upcoming election, since they
only represent 20% of the population. It is this combination of events and location caused us to be at our
busiest since we arrived in-country. Both the BLT and TH 2/24 played very important roles in the recent
fight; first, by helping isolate Fallujah, and then by capturing many of the insurgents who tried to escape
the coalition forces once the fighting in Fallujah began. So while the media focused on the efforts and
bravery of the Marines of 3/1 who captured Fallujah, it was your artillerymen who very quietly have been
taking the fight to the enemy in a supporting role that was very significant to the Fallujah operations.
There has been a spike in insurgent activity here, as well as in the rest of Iraq, which is directly related
to our seizing Fallujah. Many of the insurgents are returning home, except that these areas are now aggressively
patrolled by the Marines of the BLT and TF 2/24. As the grunts have therefore gotten busier, so have we.
Both sections of the Battery spent the last two weeks firing counterfire missions to protect coaltion forces
from indirect fire attacks (mortar attacks), as well as firing missions to support our Marines who where in
direct contact with the enemy. I am proud to report to you that your Marines been extremely succesful in their
role. We consistantly put our first rounds on target, which is exactly what a Marine artilley battery is
expected to to do. The Iraqi National Guards have reported from the south that our missions have had
significant effects on target. In the north Bravo Battery has foiled a number of attacks on Marine patrols
and convoys. Your Marines have played a significant part in operations conducted by both the BLT and TF 2/24.
Your Marines remain focused and ddetermined, morale has not been higher in the 14 months I have been
associated with the Battery. The Marines remain undeterred, confident, and ready to assume any mission.
God Bless
Captain Robert Heffner |
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November 16 |
Hello again from Al Mahmudiyah. You will be pleased to know that our Internet
and phone center is back up and running. Now your loved ones have no excuse not to contact you!
It was down for a while due to us getting a new service provider. They had to install new, larger
satellites. The rising situation in Fallujah also had some bearing on the lines of communication
being down. You can rest easy knowing that none of your Bravo battery Marines had to fight in Fallujah.
As we near the holiday seasons I expect everyone to start missing home a little more than usual.
The chain of command is doing its best, given the circumstances, to bring the holidays to us. I mean,
it’s not like Captain Heffner is going to dress up like Santa Claus or anything crazy like that.
Although that would be quite a sight to see, I don’t think that will happen. Rumor has it that they
are planning some very nice meals for the holidays which will definitely boost the morale, as well as
give us something to look forward to. That will be a welcome change to the everyday meal situation.
Don’t get me wrong, we get fed enough, it’s just that not everyone gets the chance to go to the chow
hall for breakfast and dinner. Lunch usually consists of a Meal Ready to Eat (MRE), or we provide a
meal for ourselves. The command went all out for the Marine Corps’ birthday. Just in case you didn’t
know when that was it was Nov 10th. We just celebrated our 229th birthday! Everyone was invited to dine
at the chow hall, and was served dinner by officers and the senior enlisted Marines of 2Bn 24thMar
(reservists). The menu consisted of two lobster tails, snow crab legs, and a steak as well as all of
the fixins. Needless to say we did not go hungry. As I have foreseen, a few holiday decorations as well
as presents have started rolling in. If you are going to send gifts to your Marines, let’s try not to go
overboard. We still have a mission to accomplish. We will all receive the greatest gift when we are reunited
with the people we love in a few months. That’s all for now, I will talk to you next week.
- Augie
P.S. Happy Birthday Cindy!
Cpl. Harris |
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October 22 |
Artillery - King of Battle !
FORWARD OPERATING BASE ISKANDARIYAH, Iraq --
While conducting a counter-mortar patrol in the town of Haswa, Iraq, a squad of Marines
from Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines, were ambushed
by a group of Iraqi insurgents. The insurgents opened up on the squad with small-arms
fire as they were passing through the vicinity of Haswa's old police station. The
Marines then began returning fire, and an intense firefight ensued.
M-240G machine gunners began laying down a base of fire as the rest of the squad worked to
gain fire superiority over the enemy who was well hidden in the surrounding buildings.
With the squad laying down a heavy amount of fire, enemy rounds continued to bounce off
their vehicles. Three Marines were injured, two of them seriously. With no way to stop the
enemy's barrage of gunfire from their hiding places in the building's, Marines called the
battalion's headquarters for fire support.
The battalion then forwarded the squad's fire-support request to the Marines of Bravo Battery,
who responded with blazing guns. After receiving and processing the request, the cannoneers
sent six rounds hurling toward targets called in by Alpha Company. With the added firepower,
the squad easily overpowered the enemy and began to assess their damage and care for the wounded.
"Once artillery started firing, (the insurgents') rate of fire dropped drastically," said
Sgt. Robert Ballance, 24, a Springfield, Ill., native and squad leader with Alpha Company.
Within three minutes of receipt of the call, the battery had launched its fire mission to
support the infantryman.
"We're ready to quickly assist whenever necessary," said Staff Sgt. Richard W. Musard, 38,
the battery operations chief, and a native of Richmond, Va. "We have the capability of
putting out a round in thirty seconds if needed."
"Our mission is to provide accurate and timely artillery fire every time it's necessary," said Musard.
From LCPL Zachery Frank
Marine Corps News
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October 17 |
To the Friends and Family of Bravo,
Looking at the watch I see that it is already mid-October. While most of us can't remember June it now seems like the time has gone fast. The pace of operations has increased around both battery positions so
we have been firing more artillery than before. As a result the Marines are staying focused and getting the job done. The increased pace has allowed our Marines to hit their stride and they are firing very well.
No one is complaining that the most recent operation has required a great deal less of shifting trails for out of traverse missions. Normal shooting is much easier because there is no need to elevate the tube to a
45 degree angle, pump the howitzer onto a shifting plate or physically push the howitzer onto the correct azimuth. Reports from the grunts have been that our fires have been extremely effective in suppressing enemy
mortar attacks and illuminating the palm groves during the night. Spirits are high and the Marines are doing an excellent job of staying focused on the mission. They continue to do great things.
Captain Robert Heffner |
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August 30 |
The Battery down south returned fire against a mortar attack and beat our own mortars by 2-3 mins. This shows great work on our part as it is much easier to employ a mortar quickly than a howitzer. So they are doing well. Phones and internet are expected shortly down there. I know this was promised in two weeks, two weeks ago but hopefully it will be two weeks. They continue to build up their position in the south. In fact the XO had outdoor showers put in. You do not know what a luxury this is because they are solely for the Battery and we can supervise them meaning they don't get trashed. Sometimes the Iraqis mistake the showers for toilets making the trailers very unpleasant. If I were to bet I would say it is no accident.
The Marines in the north are doing well too. We were able to get the Sea Bees to help us harden the position. Everyone that must sleep in position has significant cover against indirect fire attacks. Which are becoming more frequent with all the insurgents returning to their homes from Najah. Those wives who have Marines in the northern position will probably not be able to recognize them. Everyone here has been hitting the gym everyday. This is not something Bravo Battery is known for. So standby for some muscle bound meat heads when we get back.
Captain Robert Heffner |
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August 12 |
Since we are sort of close to Najaf we have noticed an increase in the BS around here. The witching hour, sundown to about 2300, gets interesting. Mortars land all over the place and you can always hear rifle and see tracers. I am glad these guys are lazy bastards because they almost always go to bed around 11pm. Iraq seems very safe late at night and early in the morning because the bad guys are always asleep.
In the past week we have continued to fire and as far as I know we put an illumination cannister through a guy's roof and killed two cows. I do know that we were shooting at a target and a sudden burst of tracer fire came after our 3rd of 4 rounds. No doubt we were ruining some insurgent's day.
We are all doing well, spend most of our time hardening our position. It is starting to look like the Maginot line. The schedule has settled down a little and I have found time to shower now!!!! I have been in this position for over two weeks and I just found the shower trailer 100' from the battery. I am going to hop the next convoy south to go check on the battery there.
I did actually watch a movie this week. Dodgeball. An instant classic. Yes we are still buying all the pirated movies. We are going to be the benefactor of 2/2 leaving as we will inherit all their illegal movies. The Marine Corps is actually going to follow US Customs laws, it is breaking hearts here.
I hope everyone is well.
Captain Robert Heffner |
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July 27 |
Made the convoy into Iraq the other day. Within 30 mins it got exciting.... We hit road spikes and blew 6 tires.....so we went into the tire changing drill....We started seeing things that were not adding up like people in the distance, signal flares, and what a few guys thought was an arty round....We left in a hurry....and limped to the next stop at 10 mph with two vehicles in tow. Got there on the rims with just about two ruined HMMVWs. Fortunately the mechs scrounged the parts and got us running again. Those guys are amazing!!!
Finished the move to Iskandaryah and dropped half the battery there. They are set up to deliver counter mortar fires when the time comes. I left with the other half and came to Mahmudiyah to set up another position here. For those of you following the battery there will be more contact from Mah than Isk because of infrastructure issues there. Mail will be slower to Mah than Isk because it has to go to Isk first then get sorted and sent here.
Last night was the first decent night sleep the battery had in about 5 days so we were thankful for it. By the end of today we will be rocking with arty putting our two cents into things around here.
Captain Robert Heffner
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July 25 |
They're en-route to their FOB, moving peaceably thru
An-Nasiriyah(unlike last year). The convoy was immediately livened by
their first exposure to in-coming fire and an IED. Welcome back to
Iraq ! |
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July 18 |
Camp Virginia, on the Kuwait - Iraqi
border.
They've finished their preparations for their move
into Iraq. Our Marines will be leaving within a few days, destination
an FOB(Forward Operating Base) south of Baghdad. The military has
established FOB's outside of many Iraqi cities from where our troops
can operate relatively freely. The Battery will be relieving an army
unit, and then they will begin to conduct their various tasks and
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July 8 |
Arrival in Kuwait. About half of our Marines are
returning to Iraq, having served last year in OIF 1. The rookies are
rudely introduced to the desert, as the Battery is trucked up to the
Udairi Range for a final 155 shoot. This Op lasted several days, and
the Marines re-acclimated themselves to the wildlife, sand, constant
dust - and 130 degree daytime temperatures ! |
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July 5 |
Today they departed from March AFB, an old California
airbase where they finished honing their SAS(Stability & Support
Operations). SASO ops are basically crowd-control, non-lethal weapons
training, and other methods of controlling crowds and situations with
non-deadly force. It builds on the urban training they received
previously in Camp Dawson |
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June 19 |
Bravo Battery left Camp Lejeune for March AFB
tonight, after saying goodbye to as many parents, wives, girlfriends as
could see them off. Most of the rest of the 24th MEU
departed a week sooner on the USS Kearsarge. The entire MEU will meet
in a few weeks in Kuwait, where the Battery will pick up their
howitzers and proceed.
Prior to tonight, our Bravo Battery Marines
trained at Camp Dawson, W.Va., where they practiced military
operations inside of an actual city. The highlight of their stay was
a 20 mile hump thru the mountains, culminating in a successful
assault on an abandoned factory as other Marines held back curious
on-lookers ! |
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