Download or read book Vanguard Of Valor Small Unit Actions In Afghanistan Vol I Illustrated Edition written by Donald P. Wright and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2014-08-15 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Includes 35 illustrations. Since 2001, the US Army in Afghanistan has been conducting complex operations in a difficult, often dangerous environment. Living in isolated outposts and working under austere conditions, US Soldiers have carried out missions that require in equal parts a warrior’s courage and a diplomat’s restraint. In the larger discussions of the Afghanistan campaign, the experiences of these Soldiers-especially the young sergeants and lieutenants that lead small units-often go undocumented. But, as we all know, success in Afghanistan ultimately depends on these small units and their leaders, making their stories all the more important. In 2010, as the scale and tempo of Coalition operations in Afghanistan increased, so did the need for historical accounts of small-unit actions. As commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), I commissioned the Combat Studies Institute to research and write the cases collected in this volume and in those that will follow. By capturing key insights from both lethal and non-lethal operations, I hoped these accounts would be of immediate utility to sergeants and lieutenants at the center of future operations. The eight actions described in these pages take the reader through a wide range of platoon-level operations, from an intense firefight near Kandahar to an intricate civic action project in Kunar Province. Drawing from dozens of Soldier interviews, these accounts vividly depict the actions themselves and offer critical insights of greatest benefit to the small-unit leaders of today and tomorrow. The US Army always has prided itself as an institution of constant learning, strongly committed to drawing lessons from its past. This volume from the CSI is an excellent example of that long and honorable tradition. I hope that you will find the actions related in Vanguard of Valor to be both instructive and compelling. I am sure that you will find them to be inspirational. Gen. Petraeus

Download or read book Vanguard Of Valor Small Unit Actions In Afghanistan Vol II Illustrated Edition written by Donald P. Wright and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2014-08-15 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Illustrated with 22 photos, maps and plans. Beginning in 2009, the U.S. and many of its NATO-ISAF partners dramatically raised their levels of effort in Afghanistan. The “Afghan Surge,” as it came to be known, was most evident in the number of additional US and allied troops that arrived in Afghanistan in 2009 and 2010. Their mission was clear: To reverse the Taliban’s momentum and deny it the ability to overthrow the government, and to strengthen the capacity of Afghanistan’s security forces and government so that they could assume lead responsibility for their nation’s future. For US Army units, the ways of creating stability and furthering the reach of the Afghan Government took several forms. First and foremost, US Soldiers executed complex and difficult offensive operations to seize territory that had often been held by insurgents for years. Additionally, US Soldiers formed close partnerships with Afghan Army and Police units to accelerate the growth of the Afghan security forces’ capabilities. At the heart of all of these efforts were the men and women who served in front line units during what has become longest war in our Nation’s history. In my time as the senior US commander in Afghanistan and as US Ambassador to that country, I recognized that the success of the campaign depended greatly on the skill, valor, and grit of our Army Soldiers. The present volume, Vanguard of Valor II, offers six accounts of US Soldiers at the tip of the spear during the Afghan campaign. The Combat Studies Institute’s Vanguard of Valor series is intended to document small unit actions in Afghanistan. These books play an equally important role by offering insights to Soldiers who may find themselves in the years ahead under similar conditions, whether in Afghanistan or in some other troubled land where they have been deployed to conduct the dangerous business of defending the national interest in a theater of war.-Karl W. Eikenberry

Download or read book Vanguard of Valor written by Combat Studies Institute Press and published by www.Militarybookshop.CompanyUK. This book was released on 2012-02 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the foreword by Genral (ret.) David Petraeus: "In 2010, as the scale and tempo of Coalition operations in Afghanistan increased, so did the need for historical accounts of small-unit actions. As commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), I commissioned the Combat Studies Institute to research and write the cases collected in this volume and in those that will follow. By capturing key insights from both lethal and non-lethal operations, I hoped these accounts would be of immediate utility to sergeants and lieutenants at the center of future operations. The eight actions described in these pages take the reader through a wide range of platoon-level operations, from an intense firefight near Kandahar to an intricate civic action project in Kunar Province. Drawing from dozens of Soldier interviews, these accounts vividly depict the actions themselves and offer critical insights of greatest benefit to the small-unit actions leaders of today and tomorrow. The US Army always has prided itself as an institution of constant learning, strongly committed to drawing lessons from its past. This volume from the Combat Studies Institute is an excellent example of that long and honorable tradition. I hope that you will find the actions n Vanguard of Valor to be both instructive and compelling. I am sure that you will find them to be inspirational."

Download or read book Hammer Down the Battle for the Watapur Valley 2011 War in Afghanistan Vanguard of Valor Series Fight Against Taliban and Al Qaeda Task Force Cacti written by U. S. Army and published by . This book was released on 2017-04-25 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With this third installment of the Vanguard of Valor series, the Combat Studies Institute transitions from the anthology format of the previous two volumes to one that focuses on the actions of a single unit and operation. HAMMER DOWN is the story of a tactical operation conducted by the Soldiers of 2d Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment, of the 3d Brigade Combat Team of the 25th Infantry Division, in partnership with units of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). Known as Task Force Cacti, this unit's experience in the Watapur Valley of Nuristan Province in June 2011 well illustrates the challenges of combat in the mountains of Regional Command-East, where the terrain was a constant and at times a more formidable enemy than the Taliban, HiG, or al Qaeda fighters. Coalition forces executed Operation HAMMER DOWN in an area immediately to the east of the Waygal River valley. Among the enemy fighters who squared off against TF Cacti, some undoubtedly were men who had fought the Coalition in the adjacent Pech and Korengal valleys since 2005, including men who participated in the coordinated attack on Combat Outpost Kahler at Wanat three years earlier. Just as likely, TF Cacti included veterans of previous deployments to Nuristan, who were well acquainted with the unique challenges involved in attempting to pacify this region. It is important for the reader to remember these connections and understand the role that past experience played in determining the actions of both sides during the fighting in and around the village of Gambir. By June 2011, both sides understood the other's capabilities quite well. Tactical surprise was difficult for either side to achieve, which meant that every engagement was essentially a meeting engagement. In such an environment, logistical preparation, integration of enablers, and above all small-unit leadership must provide the margin for victory.Chapter 1: Introduction * Chapter 2: US Operations in the Watapur Valley, 2002-2011 * Chapter 3: Planning and Opening Moves * Chapter 4: The Battle for the Strongpoints, 26-30 June * Chapter 5: ConclusionOn the afternoon of 25 June 2011, the Soldiers of Bravo Company, 2d Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment, 3d Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, also known as Task Force (TF) Cacti, entered an area of Afghanistan known as the "Gambir Jungle" as part of Operation HAMMER DOWN. The men of Bravo Company were far from the first Coalition force to try to clear the Watapur Valley. Situated at the northern end of the valley in Kunar Province and nicknamed after the imposing trees that cover the mountainside upon which the village of Gambir rests, the "Jungle" had been a focal point of several prior Coalition operations. Previous American units had attempted to forge ties with Gambir's elders with only limited success. The previous November, a US Special Forces (SF) unit had forcibly cleared the village but conditions in the valley deteriorated yet again.

Download or read book 16 Cases of Mission Command written by Donald P., Donald Wright, Ph. D. and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2013-12 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For the US Army to succeed in the 21st Century, Soldiers of all ranks must understand and use Mission Command. Mission Command empowers leaders at all levels, allowing them to synchronize all warfighting functions and information systems to seize, retain, and exploit the initiative against a range of adversaries. This collection of historical vignettes seeks to sharpen our understanding of Mission Command philosophy and practice by providing examples from the past in which Mission Command principles played a decisive role. Some vignettes show junior officers following their commander's intent and exercising disciplined initiative in very chaotic combat operations. Others recount how field grade officers built cohesive teams that relied on mutual trust to achieve key operational objectives. Each historical account is complemented by an annotated explanation of how the six Mission Command principles shaped the action. For this reason, the collection is ideal for leader development in the Army school system as well as for unit and individual professional development. Mission Command places great responsibility on our Soldiers.

Download or read book A Different Kind of War written by Donald P. Wright and published by www.Militarybookshop.CompanyUK. This book was released on 2010-07 with total page 412 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Based on hundreds of oral interviews and unclassified documents, this study offers a comprehensive chronological narrative of the first four years of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Download or read book American Military History Volume 1 written by Army Center of Military History and published by . This book was released on 2016-06-05 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: American Military History provides the United States Army-in particular, its young officers, NCOs, and cadets-with a comprehensive but brief account of its past. The Center of Military History first published this work in 1956 as a textbook for senior ROTC courses. Since then it has gone through a number of updates and revisions, but the primary intent has remained the same. Support for military history education has always been a principal mission of the Center, and this new edition of an invaluable history furthers that purpose. The history of an active organization tends to expand rapidly as the organization grows larger and more complex. The period since the Vietnam War, at which point the most recent edition ended, has been a significant one for the Army, a busy period of expanding roles and missions and of fundamental organizational changes. In particular, the explosion of missions and deployments since 11 September 2001 has necessitated the creation of additional, open-ended chapters in the story of the U.S. Army in action. This first volume covers the Army's history from its birth in 1775 to the eve of World War I. By 1917, the United States was already a world power. The Army had sent large expeditionary forces beyond the American hemisphere, and at the beginning of the new century Secretary of War Elihu Root had proposed changes and reforms that within a generation would shape the Army of the future. But world war-global war-was still to come. The second volume of this new edition will take up that story and extend it into the twenty-first century and the early years of the war on terrorism and includes an analysis of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq up to January 2009.

Download or read book The Tip of The Spear written by Jon T. Hoffman and published by Department of the Army. This book was released on 2009-10-16 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the Foreword: This volume focuses on that second and longer campaign. But rather than a narrative of the overall course of the conflict, it provides a soldier's-eye view of the war by focusing on detailed accounts of selected engagements. Each illustrates the everyday challenges that America's soldiers faced in a difficult struggle against an inventive and often elusive enemy. Weapons, doctrine, and procedures developed to fight a conventional campaign against a similar opposing force had to be adapted to fit a different type of conflict. The U.S. Army's combat and support forces brought both resourcefulness and resilience to this task while continuing to demonstrate the same courage shown by previous generations fighting the nation's battles. These stories not only symbolize the tip of the spear formed by units in contact, but they also represent the contributions of all American men and women who have served their country in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Taken together, these accounts will provide our deploying leaders and soldiers a better understanding of the environment that they will encounter and prepare them for the work that must be done.

Download or read book The Noncommissioned Officer and Petty Officer written by Department of Defense and published by . This book was released on 2020-02-10 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Noncommissioned Officer and Petty Officer BACKBONE of the Armed Forces. Introduction The Backbone of the Armed Forces To be a member of the United States Armed Forces--to wear the uniform of the Nation and the stripes, chevrons, or anchors of the military Services--is to continue a legacy of service, honor, and patriotism that transcends generations. Answering the call to serve is to join the long line of selfless patriots who make up the Profession of Arms. This profession does not belong solely to the United States. It stretches across borders and time to encompass a culture of service, expertise, and, in most cases, patriotism. Today, the Nation's young men and women voluntarily take an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and fall into formation with other proud and determined individuals who have answered the call to defend freedom. This splendid legacy, forged in crisis and enriched during times of peace, is deeply rooted in a time-tested warrior ethos. It is inspired by the notion of contributing to something larger, deeper, and more profound than one's own self. Notice: This is a printed Paperback version of the "The Noncommissioned Officer and Petty Officer BACKBONE of the Armed Forces". Full version, All Chapters included. This publication is available (Electronic version) in the official website of the National Defense University (NDU). This document is properly formatted and printed as a perfect sized copy 6x9".

Download or read book Between the Rivers written by John McGrath and published by . This book was released on 2019-06-24 with total page 140 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Making history useful to the reader - this is one of the missions of the Combat Studies Institute. We strive to produce works that recount historical events to inform decision makers and to enable experiential learning. This collection of events put together by John McGrath, which occurred in Iraq during the 2003-2005 timeframe, addresses that mission.

Download or read book VanGuard of Valor Volume Ii written by Combat Studies Institute Press and published by Military Bookshop. This book was released on 2012-09-01 with total page 164 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the foreword: "The present volume, Vanguard of Valor II, offers six accounts of US Soldiers at the tip of the spear during the Afghan campaign. The Combat Studies Institute's Vanguard of Valor series is intended to document small unit actions in Afghanistan. These books play an equally important role by offering insights to Soldiers who may find themselves in the years ahead under similar conditions, whether in Afghanistan or in some other troubled land where they have been deployed to conduct the dangerous business of defending the national interest in a theater of war."

Download or read book The Battle of An Nasiriyah written by Rod Andrew (Jr.) and published by Government Printing Office. This book was released on 2009 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Pentagon 9 11 written by Alfred Goldberg and published by Office of the Secretary, Historical Offi. This book was released on 2007-09-05 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The most comprehensive account to date of the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon and aftermath, this volume includes unprecedented details on the impact on the Pentagon building and personnel and the scope of the rescue, recovery, and caregiving effort. It features 32 pages of photographs and more than a dozen diagrams and illustrations not previously available.

Download or read book Red Platoon written by Instaread and published by Instaread. This book was released on 2016-06-30 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Red Platoon by Clinton Romesha | Summary & Analysis Preview: Red Platoon: A True Story of American Valor by Clinton Romesha is a memoir of the October 2009 Battle of Kamdesh, in which hundreds of Taliban insurgents attacked Keating, the most remote American combat outpost in Afghanistan. For 14 hours, the Black Knight Troop fought to defend their post. The memoir provides a detailed account of the battle, and how Romesha, the staff sergeant of Red Platoon, executed a counterattack that helped save Keating along with many of his men and earned him a Medal of Honor. Upon arriving at Keating in late May 2009, the Black Knight Troop—divided into the Red, Blue, White, and Headquarters Platoons and tasked with preparing the base for shutdown—saw right away how vulnerable they were. Established in 2006, the camp was located at the base of steep mountains and bounded by rivers in isolated Nuristan Province. Because Keating was at the bottom of a valley)… PLEASE NOTE: This is summary and analysis of the book and NOT the original book. Inside this Instaread Summary of Red Platoon: · Summary of the Book · Important People · Character Analysis · Analysis of the Themes and Author’s Style About the Author With Instaread, you can get the key takeaways, summary and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

Download or read book Certain Victory written by Robert H. Scales and published by Potomac Books, Inc.. This book was released on 1998-02-27 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The official U.S. Army account of Army performance in the Gulf War, Certain Victory was originally published by the Office of the Chief of Staff, U.S. Army, in 1993. Brig. Gen. Scales, who headed the Army's Desert Storm Study Project, offers a highly readable and abundantly illustrated chronicle.

Download or read book A Patriot s History of the United States written by Larry Schweikart and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2004-12-29 with total page 1350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For the past three decades, many history professors have allowed their biases to distort the way America’s past is taught. These intellectuals have searched for instances of racism, sexism, and bigotry in our history while downplaying the greatness of America’s patriots and the achievements of “dead white men.” As a result, more emphasis is placed on Harriet Tubman than on George Washington; more about the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II than about D-Day or Iwo Jima; more on the dangers we faced from Joseph McCarthy than those we faced from Josef Stalin. A Patriot’s History of the United States corrects those doctrinaire biases. In this groundbreaking book, America’s discovery, founding, and development are reexamined with an appreciation for the elements of public virtue, personal liberty, and private property that make this nation uniquely successful. This book offers a long-overdue acknowledgment of America’s true and proud history.

Download or read book The Last 100 Yards written by Paul Berg and published by . This book was released on 2019-05 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Last 100 Yards: The Crucible of Close Combat in Large-Scale Combat Operations presents thirteen historical case studies of close combat operations from World War I through Operation Iraqi Freedom. This volume is a collection from the unique and deliberate perspective of the last 100 yards of ground combat. In today's Army, there are few leaders who have experienced multi-domain large-scale ground combat against a near-peer or peer enemy first hand. This volume serves to augment military professionals' understanding of the realities of large-scale ground combat operations through the experiences of those who lived it.