The Road to Safwan: The 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry in the 1991 ...

The Breach 115
best troops, the Republican Guard Forces Command. Franks’s
divisions, including the 1st Infantry, were not scheduled to participate
in the initial coalition attack. Their role on Ground Attack
Day, or G Day as it was called, was to make contact with
the Iraqi defenses, get as much of their combat units as possible
across the berm, but not actually start their attack until dawn on
February 25, or G+1. The specific unit tasks were different on
the corps’s breach zone on the right (1st Infantry and 1st [UK]
Armoured Division) and the envelopment zone (2nd Cavalry,
1st and 3rd Armored Divisions) to the west. However, because
of the allied success along the coast, General Schwarzkopf
would direct the Jayhawks to change their plans and attack
much earlier than anticipated. 2
The 1st Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade’s initial task was to
secure the left half of the division sector from PL Vermont, the
border berm, to PL Plum, two to three kilometers from the Iraqi
defenses. The distance between these two lines was about
twenty-five kilometers and was already well known to the division’s
aviators. Other than a few reconnaissance vehicles and
deserting Iraqi soldiers, the leaders did not expect any significant
engagements. Shortly after 0500, February 24, scouts from
the 1-4 Cavalry and TF 2-34 AR began moving in their M3 Cavalry
Fighting Vehicles to PL Vermont, designated as the line of
departure. A scout section from each of the 1-4 Cavalry’s
ground troops was part of the advance. These scouts generally
had two missions: first ensure that the crossing lanes were clear
of Iraqi soldiers or other obstacles and second facilitate the
passing of the remainder of the unit through the berm’s narrow
lanes. Since it was still dark outside, they relied on GPS, thermal
sights on the vehicles, and night vision goggles. 3
Shortly after 0530 hours, the entire 1st Infantry Division
commenced its attack. COL Maggart’s 1st Brigade, reinforced
by the 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry, attacked on the left while
COL Anthony Moreno’s 2nd Brigade attacked on the right.
COL David Weisman’s 3d Brigade remained south of the border,
prepared to exploit the breach. 4
The squadron TOC packed up and was ready to move by
the early morning hours. CPT VJ Tedesco began the day as the
Track Command of HQ 33, the S3 section’s M577. He had put