ipl-logo

Battle Of Wanat Case Study

1542 Words7 Pages

On July 30, 2008, a bloody battle involving Coalition forces took place in the mountainous eastern Afghan province of Nuristan. This was the Battle of Wanat and the devastating amount of Coalition casualties began a vigorous investigation by the United States Army. The village of Wanat, defended by Second Platoon, Chosen Company, Second Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team would fall victim to numerous bad decision made by higher command. Although the men of Chosen Company fought hard, they ended up surrounded, vastly outnumbered, and without any Battalion assets. This paper will argue the reasons for the disastrous outcome of the Battle of Wanat; examining the effective company leadership exploiting effective …show more content…

The fault of the tragic engagement was on the battalion command. However, it was merely circumstantial that Wanat was ambushed and there was no humanly possible way to know the size of the enemy force. General Charles Campbell ended all investigations with his statement: “To criminalize command decisions in a theater of complex combat operations is a grave step indeed. It is also unnecessary, particularly in this case. It is possible for officers to err in judgment—and to thereby incur censure—without violating a criminal statute.” Thus, though the battalion command made fatal decisions, as well as Chosen Company; they had no way of knowing the size and scope of the attack. The officers made their decisions based on what they believed was the best course of action. Unfortunately, some decisions would prove detrimental in the Battle of Wanat as many brave men lost their

Show More
Related
747 Words | 3 Pages

Starting in mid-January to mid-February, there was interest in assaulting the Shahikot Valley in the Paktia province of Afghanistan by employing U.S. ground combat forces as part as an operation due to intelligence reports suggesting that enemy forces, which included al Qaeda and the Taliban where in the stages of reoccupying the area to regroup its forces after its sustaining defeats during the early stages of Operation Enduring Freedom. A debate between intelligence agencies on whether the enemy troops would be on the valley floor or on the hills. Well before the battle, early intelligence estimates, which drew on HUMINT and other sources, claimed that nearly 1,000 al Qaeda and Taliban forces might be present in the Shahikot Valley but then were lowered to about 200 to 300 personnel (Baranick, Binnendijk , Kuglar, 2009). They also concluded that they were mostly living in the valley’s villages, rather than deployed in the surrounding mountains and ridgelines as they thought they would be from the more tactical

Read More
1069 Words | 5 Pages

Principles Of Mission Command: Operation Anaconda. SSG Alicea-Sevilla, Manuel Army Sustainment University SLC: 91/94 CMF Class 23-024 SFC Hercules & Mr. Burger Date:20230428 Introduction/Abstract The essay analyzes the application of the seven command principles by the United States military during Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan in 2002. Primarily, an analysis on General Hagenbeck's operational leadership and decision-making through the lens of the seven command principles to evaluate the extent to which he adhered to them.

Read More
1265 Words | 6 Pages

Operation Anaconda In March 2002, the US military launched Operation Anaconda in the eastern part of Afghanistan's Shahikot Valley. The operation aimed to destroy the Taliban and Al-Qaeda forces that had been involved in attacks against coalition forces and Afghan civilians. The success of any military operation is based on its adherence to the seven principles of mission command outlined in ADP 6-0. I will now explain and analyze how Operation Anaconda failed or passed the seven principles of Mission Command.

Read More
850 Words | 4 Pages

Joint Planning for Operation Anaconda SFC Spurlock, Matthew MLC Class 005-18 Joint Planning for Operation Anaconda Since the beginning of the Global War on Terrorism, there have been numerous battles. One of the most important battles that shaped future joint planning of operations was Operation Anaconda. The outcome of this operation was ultimately successful, however, the original intent from the commanders were not met due to errors in the joint planning process. Joint planning during Operation Anaconda proved ineffective because of inaccurate intelligence about the terrain and weather, the exemption of Air Force and Navy during the initial planning phase, and false assumptions about the enemy. Intelligence Intelligence Preparation

Read More
1060 Words | 5 Pages

The 39th Battalion was made up of mostly 18 and 19 year old boys. They were hardly trained, unequipped and outnumbered in men. The Australians realised that they couldn’t win this battle, so they returned back to the Kokoda Village while still being cautious of Japanese troops and defending their selves. Late August was when the Australians had back up forces, but even though they had reinforcement, the Australians and Papuan’s were forced to retreat back to Imita Ridge which is just 50 km’s away from Port

Read More
1623 Words | 7 Pages

Video Script Introduction The battle of Long Tan was an incredible fight between the conscripted forces Australia and the elite determination of the Viet Cong. About 2610 soldiers fought to protect and serve what they believe is right no matter what the cost. For 3.5 hours of shooting and reloading, of killing and surviving, of blood and sweat, of gain and loss, for uncertain victory and glory they fought, and for uncertain victory and glory they died. This is the battle of Long Tan, for Vietnam, for Australia, for Asia and for the world.

Read More
1626 Words | 7 Pages

The result of St. Clair’s misuse of intelligence reporting resulted in 24 of 920 soldiers

Read More
1363 Words | 6 Pages

American troops lacked centralized command between small units. “Supporting fires, including those controlled by airborne forward air controllers, were often directed at the platoon level. Eventually human error led to five attacks by supporting aircraft on the 3/187th, killing seven and wounding 53. Four of the incidents involved Cobra gunship helicopters, which in one case were more than 1 kilometer (0.62 mi) away from their intended target.” (Wiest, 2007).

Read More
872 Words | 4 Pages

There were a plethora of war and battles in World War Two, but out of only the main ones was a last stand plan to split the Allied forces and get to their supplies, called the Battle of The Bulge. This topic was chosen because I am a big fan of video games and remembered that Medal of Honor had a mission during the Battle of The Bulge and I just thought that would be a good topic for my essay paper. During my research on the Battle of the Bulge I discovered that the Allies forces knew about a buildup of German forces and tanks, but didn’t care because they thought that the war was already over and that the Germans weren’t stupid enough to attack and waste their forces. Another reason they didn’t think that the Germans wouldn’t attack is

Read More
1526 Words | 7 Pages

Book Review 2: Soldiers, Statesmen, and Cold War Crises by Richard Betts Summary: Betts starts off his book by recognizing the ambiguity around the advocacy of the use of force in a crisis by military leaders even though there is a prevalent assumption that military professionals are more aggressive than diplomats and politicians. He states he writes the book in order to provide a comprehensive survey of the postwar role of American military men in decisions on their most essential function, their use of force in combat. Betts acknowledges the vast availability of literature on military participation in decisions on defense budgets and weapons procurement, but feels there is a void when looking at decision-making from the perspective of military leadership versus civilian leadership.

Read More
811 Words | 4 Pages

The battle of Wanat was a major battle during Operation Enduring Freedom. It took place early in the morning of July 13, 2008. Combat Outpost Kayler is the small outpost that was over run at Wanat, in the Waygal district of Afghanistan. The Soldiers of second platoon, Chosen Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Combat Team, were the primary forces under attack along with some coalition forces. The conflict originated a few weeks before the battle, when attack helicopters engaged a convoy of Taliban.

Read More
1457 Words | 6 Pages

The Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer’s Last Stand, is one of the most significant battles in American history. Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer, commander of the 7th Cavalry Regiment, performed a series of devastating tactical mistakes based off inaccurate assumptions and assessments on the size and fighting capability of the Northern Plains Indians, led by their fearless leader Crazy Horse. The Northern Plains Indians who would capitalize on these mistakes with overwhelming numbers and superior tactical action; killing all 210 Soldiers under Custer’s direct command and killing another third of his divided force. This paper will use the United States Army’s four step battle analysis methodology to analyze the Battle of

Read More
1050 Words | 5 Pages

Accessing Operation Anaconda Case Study Using Mission Command Principles Operation Anaconda was a very pivotal moment for the conflict in Afghanistan and how the American Military structured itself. In the process of learning lessons about the importance of using mission command principles when conducting large-scale operations, the American Military made significant changes to the way they conduct large-scale operations. The operation has several elements that are both good and bad for every Soldier to learn from and understand. Using the mission command principles commanders’ intent, mutual trust, and disciplined initiative. I will analyze what went right, wrong, and what could have been prevented in the 17-day operation.

Read More
1662 Words | 7 Pages

After the ARVN suffered a humiliating defeat in an earlier October 1962 skirmish, American advisors encouraged the choice to engage the 261st Main Force Battalion near Ap Bac and the 415th Regional Battalion in Ap Tan Thoi. A supposed quick and decisive victory, this battle was in the favor of the ARVN as they had greater numbers and superior weaponry. However, mistakes were made in

Read More
715 Words | 3 Pages

The purpose of this paper is, therefore, to indicate what benefit it has to me of gaining knowledge of US Army Mission Command. It helps me in my future (international) duty assignments the following graduation from the Sergeants Major Course (SMC). Multinational Collaboration In the contemporary Land Operations, we collaborate with international partners and non-governmental organizations. The key is Manoeuvrist Approach and Mission Command (Afdeling Land Warfare, 2014).

Read More

More about Battle Of Wanat Case Study

Open Document