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

130 The Road to Safwan
render. As they were talking, the remainder of A Troop passed
by. As the trailing reaction platoon moved through the area,
they saw Molitor’s M3 stopped and Iraqis moving around it.
Assuming the worst, the American tanks began engaging the
Iraqis who jumped back into their bunkers. The American now
realized how inexperienced he was, as everyone else was scurrying
for cover while he remained standing. Seeing the tanks
heading his way and still firing, he too hit the ground and followed
the Iraqi officer into his bunker, where the two waited for
the commotion to subside. After a minute or two, the firing
died down and Molitor climbed back out and told the reaction
platoon that the Iraqis were surrendering. Next time, he decided
he would make sure the rest of the platoon and troop
knew what was going on before he dismounted. Molitor’s section
finished disarming the Iraqis and sent them to the rear. He
then hurried to catch up with the rest of his platoon. 38
When B Troop arrived along PL New Jersey, it found itself
on a series of abandoned Iraqi positions on top of a low bluff
that commanded the approaches from the south. These defensive
positions were well positioned to inflict serious damage on
the advancing Americans. The strength of this complex impressed
CPT Bills, who looked back across the valley to the
ridgeline he had occupied at mid-morning the day before. He
knew they would have been hard to assault if the enemy had
not already been defeated by air and artillery. While Bills observed
the countryside, his troopers began to clear the bunkers.
They found headquarters bunkers, underground kitchens, and
ammunition storage points. Without informing most of the soldiers,
the engineer platoon accompanying the troop, with
Bills’s permission, destroyed the ammunition. The explosion
startled all and the troop commander made a note to pass the
word before he let that happen again. 39
Soon afterwards, A Troop reported that it had arrived at PL
New Jersey. From the high ground on the bluff, the cavalrymen
were able to watch the 3rd Armored Division, in battle formation,
move in brigade columns on the northwest side of the
phase line. This division, along with the 1st Armored on its left
flank, trailed the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment that was advancing
north and east in search of the Iraqi Republican Guard.