Unfortunately, the first unit to face this defense was a logistics company from Fort Bliss, Texas. The 507th Maintenance Company was part of an mpressive U.S. Army supply line, and its primary mission was to provide maintenance, supplies, and support to a patriot missile battery that would advance north toward Baghdad with the 3d Infantry Division. The 507th’s company commander entered the Army as a dental assistant and eventually worked his way into commanding mechanics, cooks, computer technicians, and clerks who lacked basic military fighting skills. He did not expect these support troops to see combat and even had his soldiers’ hand grenades and AT-4 antitank weapons collected and locked up prior to combat operations.
....
The 507th missed that turn, drove straight through downtown An Nasiriyah, and was ambushed with a “torrent of fire.” Eleven members of the 507th would eventually perish as a result of combat actions that morning. Seven others would become Operation Iraqi Freedom’s first prisoners of war (POWs).
Bookmarks