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KUNAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Soldiers from the Afghan National Army’s 2nd Brigade, 201st Corps successfully cleared their way to the Chapa Dara District Center just before noon, Sept. 17.
It took almost a month of planning; more than a week to execute, and not one part of the mission could be rushed or miscalculated.
“The (ANA) brigade commander took a very methodical approach to how (he) cleared the enemy from his primary objective, which was the route from Nangalam up to the town of Chapa Dara,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. James Deore, commander, 3rd Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, and a native of Willis, Texas.
Deore said while the distance ANA soldiers need to clear is not a far stretch, but that distance is not as important as setting up check points and continuing to protect the route as ANA soldiers push forward.
“In (the) 2nd ANA Brigade’s estimation, the hardest part was establishing communication with people who have not had the benefit of living under the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan for so long,” said Deore.
As the mission progressed, Deore expressed his concern that focus remained on mission accomplishment and not how long it takes to complete it.
“The ANA never set a specific timeline for this mission, only that at each point in the fight they would secure their formation and take the tactical pause to establish security in each area and link in with the people,” said Deore.
Soldiers from 3rd Squadron took a position at Nangalam Base to advise and assist the ANA soldiers from 2nd Brigade throughout the mission.
As the ANA soldiers progressed toward the Chapa Dara District Center, they created and reinforced observation points along the way. The Afghan National Civil Order Police were responsible for manning the positions after the ANA soldiers cleared the area and pushed forward to the next position.
In one area, the decision was made to pull ANCOP officers off an observation point, but within hours the ANCOP had returned and have remained since.
“It probably slowed [2nd Brigade’s] mission down by a day, that was one day they were not on that OP building-up fortifications, so really only manpowerhours were lost,” said Capt. Gordon Rutledge, a native of Madison, Wis., and fires support officer, 3rd Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment. “That probably made the most tactical sense at the time,” he added.
Deore said the ANA soldiers from 2nd Brigade accomplished their goal of setting up checkpoints and securing a direct route to the Chapa Dara District Center. The take away for 3rd Squadron Soldiers is that they did exactly what they came to do.
“The winning portion of this mission for the U.S. Soldiers involved was that we were able to be here and share the knowledge and experience that we bring to the table and to the fight as well as recognize where the ANA needed development,” Deore said. “By the time we leave [Afghanistan] the ANSF should show much more capability and capacity.”
| Date Taken: | 09.11.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 09.25.2013 15:19 |
| Story ID: | 114242 |
| Location: | AF |
| Web Views: | 204 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 201st ANA Corps secures route to Chapa Dara, by SFC E. L. Craig, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
