Falling Into History
Falling Into History ODA 074 makes first combat halo jump into Iraq

By ODA 074 team members and Captain Karla S. Owen
In the early morning hours of May 30, 2007, an 11-man Special Forces team crept silently through an Iraqi village. Their target: a suspected terrorist with ties to traffickers in counterfeit U.S. currency and a criminal network known for supporting the movement and funding of foreign fighters, weapons and equipment into the country.

For the mission to be successful, the team had to take the village by surprise. That wasn’t an easy task, as the suspected terrorist had implemented a robust early-warning network, taking advantage of the remote location, and thus giving him the ability to escape or destroy evidence within minutes. The team, Operational Detachment — Alpha 074, 3rd Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group, went outside the box, electing to conduct the first combat standoff military free-fall insertion of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

After carefully studying the terrain and the capabilities of the terrorist network, the team’s leader decided that a military free-fall, or MFF, insertion would be the best option for overcoming the early warning system. On the ground, a joint U.S.-Iraqi quick-reaction force would provide assault support after the team took the village.

An MFF team is composed of personnel with advanced parachutist’s skills. These skills include parachute ground training, advanced aircraft procedures, instruction on life-support equipment and procedures with high-altitude airborne operations. The latter are known as high-altitude, low-opening, or HALO, or high-altitude, high-opening, or HAHO, jumps, with exit altitudes ranging up to 25,000 feet and parachute openings as low as 4,000 feet, all while jumpers are wearing combat equipment, supplemental oxygen and navigational equipment.

Furthermore, a traditional MFF team is typically used as a small element for reconnaissance insertions, not for purely offensive operations.

Despite the fact that every company within an SF group has an MFF team assigned, over the years, SF has used this means of insertion only once per military campaign, and even then, primarily for surveillance or targeting. Rarely has an MFF team been inserted to complete an offensive operation. The last documented MFF in combat by an SF team prior to 2007 was in January 1991, when a 12-man team inserted into the northwest deserts of Iraq in support of Operation Desert Storm.

ODA 074 decided during predeployment training that they would approach MFF as a viable combat option, with the objective of changing the mentality regarding its use. The team leadership bought into the idea that by training right and maintaining their skills, the MFF team could become a valuable command asset.

ODA 074 trained for deployment for more than 12 months. Prior to deploying to Iraq, the team completed more than 40 HALO/HAHO jumps in preparation for such a contingency.

The team collectively had an average of four years of MFF and SF experience. The seasoned team members wanted to test themselves, their equipment and their capabilities. In preparation for deployment, the team leaders wanted to give the MFF training a combat focus. That began by acknowledging that mission success is not achieved by simply reaching the insertion point.
At the heart of the training was the idea that a combat HALO jump should not be considered an anomaly in today’s war-fighting environment. To gain the confidence and acceptance of the command for using MFF in the war on terror, ODA 074 developed a new approach to training.

“A key training objective … was obtaining and maintaining Level I proficiency as late as possible prior to deployment,” according to the task-force commander, Lieutenant Colonel Dan Stoltz, who was also the 3rd Battalion commander.

Stolz said HALO teams must maintain a Level I proficiency, which includes nighttime combat-equipment jumps with supplemental oxygen and landing as a group, for an entire deployment. Level I proficiency is good only for 120 days, so if an MFF ODA conducts its qualification too early in pre-mission training, the qualification will expire early during the deployment.

ODA 074 was prepared and surpassed the Army standards, updating its airborne standard operating procedures and ensuring that it was always combat-focused.
A central aspect of their pre-deployment training was being allowed to perform extensive testing and training with the prototype version of a parachutist navigation system. According to the vendor, the system provides parachutists with accurate navigation capabilities and enhanced situational awareness, allowing them to fly to their designated landing zones.

The use of the system assisted in the training and provided the team with a precision method for determining jumper release points over unfamiliar territory, at night, with no visual references necessary. The system provided the jumpers with the ability to accurately navigate over long distances while under canopy and land together in unmarked drop zones during periods of limited visibility.

The team conducted 13 HAHO jumps while testing the helmet system, constantly verifying its capabilities against navigation boards, or “belly compasses.” The constant checks on the technology gave the team confidence in its ability to navigate with the compass while under canopy.

During the final day of training, ODA 074 made a final nighttime jump, which served to alleviate any concerns that remained with the new technology. The longest HAHO saw the team under canopy for more than 14 kilometers, or 8.68 miles,with all jumpers landing within a 50-meter radius.

While the team did not deploy with the navigation system, its testing improved the team’s ability and confidence in its abilities to conduct an accurate combat MFF. When it came time to plan the mission in Iraq, they knew their train-up was solid. Their skills were second-nature.

Having trained on unmarked drop zones, in desert conditions and with full-gear jumps, the team was confident that HALO was the right method for this particular target. They did not go looking for a HALO jump, and in fact, they had completed more than 12 ground-offensive operations while continuing to train their Iraqi counterparts when the mission in the Ninewah Province came along.

The leaders of ODA 074 were confident in their training and equipment, and when they had met the “go-criteria” for the mission, they knew they could achieve the surprise needed to accomplish the mission.

Mission planning was narrowed down to three days, based on intelligence of the targeted individual’s location, nighttime weather conditions and nighttime illumination. Once the approval had been given and the date chosen, the team commenced final preparations.

Force protection was a top concern, according to the commander of Advanced Operating Base 070, Major Isaac J. Peltier.

“With this isolated objective, we were very aware of the potential force-ratio differences between a small 11-man team and a larger ground-assault force,” Peltier said. “Contingency plans were put in place, and with the intelligence that we had received regarding the target, we took the needed steps to mitigate the risk.”

Early on May 29, the operation began with the movement of ODA 074 and its Iraqi Army counterparts to an airfield located on a nearby forward operating base, or FOB, where the team linked-up with its sister detachment, ODA 075. ODA 075 was responsible for controlling the follow-on ground assault forces that were composed of ODA 074’s counterparts in the Iraqi army and ODA 075’s in the Iraqi police. At the FOB, the final coordination, air-mission brief with air elements, mission brief for ground forces and rehearsals were conducted in preparation for the actual combat operation.

ODA 074 members moved to the flight line, rigged their combat equipment and conducted jumpmaster inspections while ODA 075 simultaneously moved with its Iraqi counterparts to a secure staging location closer to the target. There ODA 075 would wait for ODA 074 to initiate the assault.

Shortly after midnight, the 11-man MFF team boarded an MC-130 Combat Talon aircraft especially well-suited to conduct the night drop in variable conditions.

When the team and the aircrew went airborne, the illumination provided by the moon was close to 100-percent. At approximately 4 a.m., at an altitude of nearly 13,000 feet, the team performed a diving exit off the ramp of the aircraft. All jumpers used the MC-4 Ram Air Free-Fall Personnel Parachute System, wearing supplemental oxygen, carrying their assigned weapons and a parachutist’s drop bag, weighing more than 100 pounds, that contained their combat equipment.

The team knew that conditions on the ground do not always match the conditions in the air, and that lesson was reinforced. Because of an approaching sandstorm, the moon was in a haze, and the team realized that visibility near the ground was going to be far less than they had been told to expect. At 6,000 feet, each jumper deployed his parachute and oriented toward the blacked-out, unmarked drop zone and rally point.

One of the critical aspects of conducting a combat MFF is the ability of parachutists to read their navigation boards so that they can land close together at the predetermined drop zone. The infrared strobes worn by each jumper were only intermittently visible, making it difficult for them to group together under canopy. This resulted in the team landing in three separate, dispersed groups. That did not hinder the outcome of the mission, because each small group conducted a tactical drop-zone assembly. The groups accounted for personnel, recovered equipment, cached parachutes and air items and donned their individual assault gear.

Once combat-ready, the separate elements moved to a link-up site south of the target area. The 11 members of ODA 074 then moved as a team to their final concealed position, 300 meters south of the target area, before beginning their ground assault.

Peltier pointed out that fog and friction are inherent in every operation. The incoming sandstorm was not forecast, and the resulting dispersion led to a longer assembly time. Under those circumstances, patience was key. “Because of the dispersion, the team took longer to assemble than planned,” Peltier said, “but I trusted my team. They were one of my best.”

ODA 074 then crept up to the buildings and made a stealthy entry into the target area. As the team cleared the rooms and floors of the targeted structures, it completely surprised all the villagers it encountered. Within 10 minutes, all the intended people on the objective were under control. Six minutes later, ODA 075 and its ground-assault force arrived, securing the perimeter and the entire target area.

Although the targeted individual was not in the village, the mission was 100-percent successful in achieving surprise. Because there was absolute silence when the team arrived on target, every person was still asleep instead of being alerted, awake and waiting. Despite landing in and moving through known smuggler and foreign-fighter “ratlines,” all the team elements were able to link up and conduct a direct-action mission without compromise.

Since redeployment, the team has continued to train, drawing on lessons learned to further evolve its operating procedures. Planning more realistic timelines for accommodating contingencies is only one consideration. Navigating under canopy using night-vision devices, using drop-zone assembly procedures, and using unmarked drop zones at night continues to build the team’s confidence and prepares it for future combat MFF operations.

Since the MFF insertion, the team has seen a few changes. Some members have moved on to other SF organizations, but eight of the 11 original members still train together. The training continues to expand and to improve at every level.

Quote:
This article was written by the members of ODA 074, 3rd Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group, in conjunction with Captain Karla S. Owen of the 10th SF Group Public Affairs Office.

 

Thats just an awesome shot!

Jumping at night, with 150+ pounds of gear, and weapons, knowing you're going to get into a fight when you get downstairs... Thats one helluva day at the office.

 

Are those legit or photoshopped?

I can't imagine that shooting from a segway is good for balance.

 

Nope! thats the real deal.

 

Whoever you're shooting at is likely to die of laughter, so, I guess it could be effective.

 

 

That's gotta be a SEAL - that's their typical rig - 10" M4 w/EO-Tech...

 

Yeah it is, the last couple I posted were all SEAL's

 

I was about to ask. Where is he?

 

That's classified, son.