I looked at my watch. 1130, shit on a stick this was gunna be tight.

We were going to need to multi task. Eating and planning were one way to do that so was grabbing kit while we talked through a tentative plan.

I’d already run through an outline with the Intelligence Officer [ zero help there that was for sure, was it the Russians, some hacker? Both?]

The Destroyers fire support team were excellent, I plotted out TRP’s for them on both my planned route and likely FRAGO routes. Once I confirmed the comm site the Operations Officer would get a one time use coded grid sent from me that my team and I knew and the Ops Officer knew.

This recon patrol would have to in and out fast, in order to maintain operational security.

Eight men, all looking a bit worse for wear and weary. The last few days on MREs and the high humidity had washed weight from all of us. “Ok, listen up. We got as they say, a situation. Charlie and Alpha are on the run. We need to plan, gear up, eat and insert ASAFP or they are dead. Both had managed one ammo resupply and got some local assistance. But we got to go cut the head of the snake off. We insert @ 1800.”

No slumped shoulder, no bravado. Just resignation and determination. Good. It’s going to take that to get through this one. I continued, “Route planning is going to be a bitch, it’s all jungle from DZ to Objective. Our PZ is near a friendly village. We go in, we confirm our recon is what management thinks it is then we boogie. Once we spurt data with the co ordinates Naval will splash the site and air will damage assess. Load out, is going to be ammo centric. Plus all the usual I want plenty of ‘nades, claymores, a javelin in case we need to hit this site ourselves. Lotsa water too, based on our last run salt tablets too.

Ok lets walk through scenarios since we believe comms are exposed. We travel fast in modified file, alternating per usual, keep each other in sight at all times subject to terrain.

For close in ambushes, as you know violence of action is going to best for us with our fire discipline and accuracy. So, we manoeuvre and assault. Distant ambushes, if we can flip the script let’s do so and hasty ambush. Alpha fire team off to the left, Bravo forming the L. With left & right flank security. Based on our last three weeks here we know these bozos usually use PKM’s and AK’s, dropping the PKM is priority one, as are any RPG meatbag heroes. We will need to make 3 trail/road crossings so let’s talk through those. Brooks you will be Bravo Fireteam Lead walk us through best practices.”

While Brooks did his part, my mind wanders to Ops Order. So many variables. Weather, friendly forces, unit and sub unit tasks. The list was endless.

Shit it was 1330.

Our insert was pegged for 1800, that gave us all night to get to the Objective and most of the day to recon if need and an extract no later than 1500 day 2.

“Gear up gentlemen, camo checks & cross checks in 45. Kit bash in one hour, lets go”.

Then we waited.. Because that was what Army does. Hurry up and wait.

2100

The UH60’s were spun up, as we approached from the front, each of us thumbed up the pilot. As we boarded the crew chief stowed our extra gear. We revved up and away we went, low and running Nap of Earth across the water to the coastline. The men nap, check straps or fidget. Me I cross check nav, and listen in on the crew, something about knowing an RPG is inbound makes me feel better. Soon enough we slow down over the jungle. We disembark, forming a quick perimeter, the helos roar away and silence descends on the area.

The great thing about night time infiltration was the silence. We formed up in an spread file and hightailed it from the DZ .

One hundred yards into the jungle canopy I called a security halt.

The key here was stillness and awareness. NOD [night vision ] off I calmed my breathing, checked everyone’s orientation then immersed myself into the environment. Sweat trickled down the nape of my neck, body plates rubbed. Kit creaked against my breathing. Then came the rush. With my eyes closed I could hear, smell and see in my mind almost everything. Frogs, bugs, animals scampering in the high canopy & the fetid decomposing plant life. We were one with the jungle.

“All clear.” Now we were on mission. I snap a hand signal and we fall out staggered file.

2200

In the last hour we had moved just one kilometre [click]. Partially clay trail, the rest heavy jungle, the ground cover is littered with vines and rot. Up ahead we should be approaching a major track, semi road. I slow the team down. While I’m scanning the trail Brooks assistant Patrol Ldr is busy situating flank security. Once the far side is secured we bolt across. I run a quick count, and we ease on out.

One of the neat things about Ranger school is they teach you about focus. 100% on the task at all times.

With the last few days not yet settled it was not long before I broke discipline, call it weariness, call it sloppy. It was wrong. I was recapping our prior mission mentally checking where we could improve and how our OPSEC was broken and when. That my friends is a bad sign.

We had moved silently about another 500m and I was already distracted, feeling foggy.

Usually, it’s a sign of the shit about to hit the fan. Fortunately for me two things happened almost simultaneously first, I snapped myself out of the mental meandering and at the same time our point man raised a closed fist. That my friends will get your attention in a heart beat, pucker your sphincter…GET YOUR ATTENTION!! , in the jungle when this is supposed to be a clean drop zone. We silently took a knee, quartered our views and moving only our eyes searched for what he saw. I orient to the facing of my point man. What did he see?

Hand signal. 10 men, in file. Yep, now we could all hear them. Though their noise discipline was pretty good it was not Ranger good. Rotting twigs snapped or ‘mushed’, fronds flipped and swished. But they were silent with no lights and more concerning, they moved with a purpose.

I’m no born leader. But I’ve been trained, and well trained, we do it hard and one thing a good leader can do with a great team is make smart decisions quickly. Hasty Ambush was my call.

Bravo squad the furthest away, formed the L across the trail, we would be the spine. Each man in Alpha squad melted to the left slowly and quietly. The enemy was just 50m away now. A quick scan ensures flank and rear security got us covered. Squelch pops twice. Confirmed 10 tangoes from Flank security.

Our challenge here was for this to be a quick clean kill, no squirters, no survivors and use as little ammo as possible. A full tilt boogie firefight is not what we need. We just touched down. They were close now. I’d fire first single shot, then the rest would chime in after we used grenades. Anyone still breathing would then be dispatched up close and personal.

2230

A random patrol? Maybe. But whoever they were they died fast. One m203 round and a grenade fragged up or wounded all the rebels. Clean up crew finishes the rest off. We gather up weapons, there are no documents. Hmm. We rally up and perform a security halt. We move 150m down trail, on high alert, adrenaline pumping, after the quick but deadly fight.

Crack, crack, chatter, chatter. Shit.. a follow-on patrol? Foliage is torn to pieces, soggy bark splinters and flies in our faces. We hit the dirt.

No orders needed, the 249’s return fire, attempting to get the upper hand on lead distribution as quickly as possible. It’s the way. These guys based on the muzzle flashes are close together and just 200m down trail. The canopy is higher here, there is less undergrowth and sight ranges are good. Both sides pour a lot of fire at each. “Hit” comes the dreaded word.

Brooks my Bravo SL is HIT. “Medic, see to him I shout out. But Wegmann is already on the way. “Changing mag”, “moving” is being called with clipped precision, the enemy however is pushing shit back at us….We move like a machine, extending our line while Left Security checks flank. Can we flank them? Can we exit via bounds? Nah…

“Screw this, gimme comms, get the Farragut on the line for a fire mission, Grid reference TRP #4, adjust to M24-5. ”

“Lt, what about Radio Silence?” said Reyes. “It appears to be a moot at this point Reyes, make the call.”

The reply from gunnery is quick but terse ‘ you are danger close, move 100 m East.’ “Negative, fire away gimme a spotting shot, we are pinned down.”

Thirty long seconds pass then the whistle, the drone and best of all the flash. The concussive blast is indeed close. ‘ ahh. Yeah Fire for Effect, but for FFS no closer!” I shout into the comms unit, “TAKE COVER, INCOMING”.

The ground reverberates, leaves bounce off the ground, the precision rounds come thick and fast.

Silence. Leaves and fronds and branches hang in a desultory fashion. Navy done f#$ked some shit up! “Medic”…Ahh crap that was Shultz by the sounds of it. Then someone cracks, “You Shultz you got shot by Navy.. gunna tell your mom?” I guess from the shit banter we got a minor wound. The good news is a trained soldier is gunna be up and at them before the last reverb shakes their thick head. The enemy, They are probably sucking thumbs and find a whole to crawl into.

I hand signal LFS and RFS, move, move, we flank and attack we come hard. The two light MGs pepper the area. Sporadic fire is returned. “Hit”.. calls out Reyes I glance at him; his right pant leg is dirty dark brown. He drops behind a tree and slits it open. “Well, it’s just a chunk o’ meat Lt, but it hurts like a fucker.” He starts wrapping it real quick, then our Medic joins in. Reyes pushes him away, its good. Finish ’em off.”

I look around and realize we are down a man as well, where is “Holmann?”. With suppressive fire keeping heads down we pepper rounds and Brooks lobs a grenade killing the rest of the ambushing force. As we press in Wegmann closes up on me and says quietly “Holmann is knocked out, from the blast of arty! We will come to shortly, a large branch clipped him he will come to shortly.” “Hmm. maybe his nick name needs to be Twiggy? ” Yeah, bad joke. Anyway all the losers are dead we police up parts and weapons and rally up.  After a Security Halt we head back out.

We are radio silent again, the call for the strike was a chance to take that we needed to do, to clear the way. Time to boogie.