Airsoft in the YubaCity / Marysville area.
AAR EPHEMERAL SPECTRE V 10.16.9
This Cimmerian OP was held in the desert north of the Reno, Nevada. The OP included Friday set-up and night patrols. All night patrols into Saturday AM, camp guard, and more patrols. Saturday daytime OPs included assault and pursuit missions. Closing on Saturday was a dinner feast and stories around the campfire and some real-steel. Sunday was awards for the Recon team.
Operators involved: Scramble, Tank. FlapJack, Seven, Kattiana, and Komissar. Asst. Sprocket.
This post is to report what went well, and what didn't, (under intelligent request from Phoenix) so that we might learn and become better solders for our battles to come.
May we have many more opportunities to improve.
Oct.14 Friday:
Last minute messaging and phone calls to inform team of transportation plans.
Plans made by Scramble and Komissar to transport all six operators to AO was last minute.
Only due to Scramble taking charge of the situation did this run smooth.
It is each operator's responsibility to know when and where the OP is and make arrangements to get there in a timely fashion.
"I think Joe is driving" is not an appropriate response.
"No one has called me yet" is not an appropriate response.
One vehicle had trouble locating the AO because no one, (of four), in the vehicle printed directions.
Heading into an area with no cell service this was an issue.
My compliments to their sheer determination, as they did arrive and with plenty of time.
Upon arrival: our team was told to set camp and be ready for patrol at dusk. This brought enough excitement to; unload both vehicles, set-up the tent, stow the kit and food, load and prep the AEGs, all in under two minutes. Nice to know what can be done with proper motivation.
The mission begins:
Our first patrol was to find and record six locations using map and compass. These locations were to be entered into a GPS unit and recorded by satellite coordinates onto our roster. This is difficult enough when there is no moon and a well trained Recon Team in the area.
Our patrol kept poor spacing. At night, patrol spacing is understandably closer.
They did not stay in Order of March. Sounding off needs practice.
Constant talking. At night listening is as important as seeing.
Point team was not always available by radio. Delays caused by poor use of radios.
Our patrol was not ambushed by the Recon Team. Probably because we sounded like a column of Shermans coming down the road.
We did find five of our GPS locations under very tough conditions before being pulled off to patrol West.
Scramble excelled at point under very difficult conditions.
We were pulled off our reconnaissance patrol and sent West to seek an engage the enemy Recon Team who had fired upon camp sentries. We made good time to the location and found no enemy.
We re-entered camp by a different route than the one we had left by.
At camp were were told to stand down.
Two minutes later our team was called on for mounted road patrol.
Two Hummer's and two teams to find and engage the Recon Team.
*Komissar was unavailable and cannot comment on this patrol*
After the road patrol, the "hunters" turned in for some rest.
Below is Komissar Rant
Not all operator of our team were prepared for the cold conditions found in the high desert.
All operators should be prepared for the conditions and terrain they are heading into.
Warm clothing, food, water, batteries, ammo, backup equipment, and anything else to assist yourself and your team.
Warm food, drink, and clothes were lent to those who needed.
A battery charger was brought by FlapJack for discharged batteries.
To have unseen problems arise is unavoidable. We can be prepared to take care of each other.
However, to come unprepared places an undue burden on your teammates.
Be prepared and take care of your team.
Rant is over.
During night watch:
No one was set for watches or guard duty by anyone out there.
The Corps took it upon themselves to guard the VIP who was set near the campfire.
Tank and Komissar took turns patrolling, having coffee, and awaiting the inevitable.
After investigating noises around the camp several different times, both were shot and the VIP target was assasinated.
*Note: For storyline, this was the intent of the mission, but we could have had more operators on guard, and those on guard could have kept better spacing to give the Recon Team a bad time.*
Oct.15 Saturday:
Tank rode out with Fritz for set-up at around 0500.
The remaining morning was quiet.
Most didn't rise until coffee and briefing at around 0800.
Once mounted we were delivered for a sweep, in line, of the hills South of camp.
We kept good spacing, communication, and formation.
The Corps held the left of our forces advancing line.
We spotted the Recon Team, engaged, and pursued them to a large dry creek bed.
At this point, Scramble, Sprocket, and Komissar actively took up the sweep leading the Corps team East up the creek bed and into the hills
Our team should have adopted a line from the creek bed extending to the North.
Instead, we had operators behind wandering the ground already searched by those ahead.
This action of searching should have been done quickly so the Recon Team could not have out paced us.
Those following were moving too slowly in my account.
Oct.15 Saturday Noon:
At lunch the Corps was set to hold a perimeter at am intersection while the other team had lunch.
After ten minutes for lunch the teams switched positions.
During the Corps' watch, we were to have a fifty foot perimeter from center and find cover.
All operators should be able to be seen from command and to at least one other operator.
Only one of our operators chose not to keep within the perimeter.
This leads to breakdown of communication, and again makes it harder to command when people are not where they are supposed to be. Simply, it looks unprofessional.
Our team took up positions quickly. They kept their eyes open and mouths shut.
Waiting, watching, and prepared. Well done.
Our next job was a road patrol to lead our Hummer while another team followed up behind.
We fell into road column. Our spacing was good, operators covered the direction they were supposed to, and chatter was kept to a minimum. verbal and hand signals were used to keep the formation tight and moving along with the Hummer. Again, nice job.
Oct.15 Saturday Hummer Assault:
Down the road we moved off into some tree cover and began enguaging an enemy Hummer and it's troops. In the anxiousness to get into the fight, our team ran headlong into the brush with no coordination, communication, or understanding of where our enemy was.
Getting into the action was all that was on anyone's mind.
We got shot-up, didn't communicate or stay together. There was no regrouping point, and in fact, no group. Good thing we can lay down a lot of firepower, because the enemy still was forced back by our uncoordinated attack. It's a good thing they did not have more troops available to reinforce that spot or we would have been over run.
As it was, our Hummer continued down the road, (after running over mines twice) and we flanked the enemy's position. They withdrew into the trees at the far side while we regrouped.
Poor coordination for our team. We should have had a plan going in, and in case things went badly.
From here our team returned cross country, North to Base Camp. As we arrived, we received orders to set a perimeter to the West of camp and hold position. Another team was to scout further West, where our camp guards had been shot at the previous night. Our command was in this scouting group.
Oct.15 Saturday Base Camp Defense:
We took up position covering both sides of the hill our camp was on.
This is where our radio communication took a dump. Completely flunked out.
Our radio operator reported from command, that we had enemy coming in from the South.
I pulled more of our team over to defend the South. You could see enemy movement in the trees.
The next report was: Enemy on the road! Engage enemy on the left! and Defend Base Camp!
We moved quickly to secure positions within the Base Camp. The enemy was moving closer.
The next report was: Get out of the Camp!
I hurriedly led us the 75 meters back to our original hillside defense. I am getting irritable.
The next report: Get to the other side of the camp! (the East side right in front of visible firing enemy).
With considerable determination (frustration and anger), I led the team right through the hail of gunfire and into position on the far East side of the camp as the enemy moved in firing on us.
A large gun battle ensued.
Twenty minutes of firing before they fell back.
I was forced to disregard our radio operator after being told to "get out of camp".
All reported orders after the enemy was spotted and began firing were questionable.
Our team was put in hazards way by numerous contradicting orders.
Combat needs to bring calm.
This resembled ants in a hail storm! All kinds of badness.
After arriving on the East side of the camp we took up defensive positions and halted the enemy advance. The enemy had to move away from the cover of the treeline toward our team which was taking cover in the "motor-pool". We had a better position . . . finally.
Scramble noticed troops moving up our left flank so I moved 100 meters uphill to cover our left.
Scramble remained in position and took charge of the team to repel the attackers. We used hand signals effectively to continue communication. Tank positioned himself, in cover, between Scramble and I so he could relay communication when needed.
Our six man team was spread over a huge area, and kept it from the enemy who was directly attacking the ground we held. We had lines of crossfire, good communication, hard cover (most of us), and we still got there before they did.
The enemy force pulled back and headed around our position by going uphill to the East.
This moved them around our left flank.
Oct.15 Saturday The Pusuit:
After regrouping with the other team and command, our entire force took off in pursuit of the enemy troops who continued North from our position. Once again our team fell apart.
Scramble, FlapJack and I pushed hard to close the distance between us and the enemy.
Kattiana, Tank and Seven moved at a slower pace and this effectively made our team two groups of three with my group closer to the enemy.
The lead group ran, and pursued the enemy to the base of a large hill.
(we could see the enemy approximately 500 meters away, near the top)
Our lead group was told to regroup at a rock outcropping feature to the West of the enemy hill.
We met most of our forces just arriving at this point. And our team was together again.
After a quick patrol, I received orders to search for a camera that was our objective in a ravine that circled the enemy hill. I was soon followed up by Kattiana, FlapJack, and Scramble.
The camera was an objective for the opposing Recon Team who now held the hill above it.
The Recon Team had gotten to the objective first; however our search had brought us full circle around and behind the occupied hill. We began moving up the steep hill, being watched from above.
Making our way up and around a group of us gathered for the final assault.
Assault team: Komissar, Kattiana, Scramble, Mud, Roman, Ichi, and FlapJack.
Oct.15 Saturday The Final Assault:
The first assault of our team went well in finding the enemy dug-in and waiting for us.
After the first wave, communications wavered, and we only continued to re-spawn in small groups.
Our combat effectiveness was lessened and it took an incredibly long time for us to uproot the enemy. Tank and Seven had joined the force which was attacking from the South, while we had moved in from the East and then South.
We were all tired from the 24 hour event. Most of us had pushed hard all night and all day. Three of us had run to pursue the enemy for several miles in full gear, the remainder had miles of hiking. Lastly, we had all climbed and fought to the top of this white topped hill to face a determined group of defenders who had prepared for our arrival. And we gave them hell.
I don't know how much this AAR will be to those who were there.
Maybe it's more of a story for those who didn't go.
After all this I can say, I am proud for having done it. It was fun.
To add on old laconic saying, "MOLAN LABE"
Operators involved: Scramble, Tank. FlapJack, Seven, Kattiana, and Komissar. Asst. Sprocket.
This post is to report what went well, and what didn't, (under intelligent request from Phoenix) so that we might learn and become better solders for our battles to come.
May we have many more opportunities to improve.
Oct.14 Friday:
Last minute messaging and phone calls to inform team of transportation plans.
Plans made by Scramble and Komissar to transport all six operators to AO was last minute.
Only due to Scramble taking charge of the situation did this run smooth.
It is each operator's responsibility to know when and where the OP is and make arrangements to get there in a timely fashion.
"I think Joe is driving" is not an appropriate response.
"No one has called me yet" is not an appropriate response.
One vehicle had trouble locating the AO because no one, (of four), in the vehicle printed directions.
Heading into an area with no cell service this was an issue.
My compliments to their sheer determination, as they did arrive and with plenty of time.
Upon arrival: our team was told to set camp and be ready for patrol at dusk. This brought enough excitement to; unload both vehicles, set-up the tent, stow the kit and food, load and prep the AEGs, all in under two minutes. Nice to know what can be done with proper motivation.
The mission begins:
Our first patrol was to find and record six locations using map and compass. These locations were to be entered into a GPS unit and recorded by satellite coordinates onto our roster. This is difficult enough when there is no moon and a well trained Recon Team in the area.
Our patrol kept poor spacing. At night, patrol spacing is understandably closer.
They did not stay in Order of March. Sounding off needs practice.
Constant talking. At night listening is as important as seeing.
Point team was not always available by radio. Delays caused by poor use of radios.
Our patrol was not ambushed by the Recon Team. Probably because we sounded like a column of Shermans coming down the road.
We did find five of our GPS locations under very tough conditions before being pulled off to patrol West.
Scramble excelled at point under very difficult conditions.
We were pulled off our reconnaissance patrol and sent West to seek an engage the enemy Recon Team who had fired upon camp sentries. We made good time to the location and found no enemy.
We re-entered camp by a different route than the one we had left by.
At camp were were told to stand down.
Two minutes later our team was called on for mounted road patrol.
Two Hummer's and two teams to find and engage the Recon Team.
*Komissar was unavailable and cannot comment on this patrol*
After the road patrol, the "hunters" turned in for some rest.
Below is Komissar Rant
Not all operator of our team were prepared for the cold conditions found in the high desert.
All operators should be prepared for the conditions and terrain they are heading into.
Warm clothing, food, water, batteries, ammo, backup equipment, and anything else to assist yourself and your team.
Warm food, drink, and clothes were lent to those who needed.
A battery charger was brought by FlapJack for discharged batteries.
To have unseen problems arise is unavoidable. We can be prepared to take care of each other.
However, to come unprepared places an undue burden on your teammates.
Be prepared and take care of your team.
Rant is over.
During night watch:
No one was set for watches or guard duty by anyone out there.
The Corps took it upon themselves to guard the VIP who was set near the campfire.
Tank and Komissar took turns patrolling, having coffee, and awaiting the inevitable.
After investigating noises around the camp several different times, both were shot and the VIP target was assasinated.
*Note: For storyline, this was the intent of the mission, but we could have had more operators on guard, and those on guard could have kept better spacing to give the Recon Team a bad time.*
Oct.15 Saturday:
Tank rode out with Fritz for set-up at around 0500.
The remaining morning was quiet.
Most didn't rise until coffee and briefing at around 0800.
Once mounted we were delivered for a sweep, in line, of the hills South of camp.
We kept good spacing, communication, and formation.
The Corps held the left of our forces advancing line.
We spotted the Recon Team, engaged, and pursued them to a large dry creek bed.
At this point, Scramble, Sprocket, and Komissar actively took up the sweep leading the Corps team East up the creek bed and into the hills
Our team should have adopted a line from the creek bed extending to the North.
Instead, we had operators behind wandering the ground already searched by those ahead.
This action of searching should have been done quickly so the Recon Team could not have out paced us.
Those following were moving too slowly in my account.
Oct.15 Saturday Noon:
At lunch the Corps was set to hold a perimeter at am intersection while the other team had lunch.
After ten minutes for lunch the teams switched positions.
During the Corps' watch, we were to have a fifty foot perimeter from center and find cover.
All operators should be able to be seen from command and to at least one other operator.
Only one of our operators chose not to keep within the perimeter.
This leads to breakdown of communication, and again makes it harder to command when people are not where they are supposed to be. Simply, it looks unprofessional.
Our team took up positions quickly. They kept their eyes open and mouths shut.
Waiting, watching, and prepared. Well done.
Our next job was a road patrol to lead our Hummer while another team followed up behind.
We fell into road column. Our spacing was good, operators covered the direction they were supposed to, and chatter was kept to a minimum. verbal and hand signals were used to keep the formation tight and moving along with the Hummer. Again, nice job.
Oct.15 Saturday Hummer Assault:
Down the road we moved off into some tree cover and began enguaging an enemy Hummer and it's troops. In the anxiousness to get into the fight, our team ran headlong into the brush with no coordination, communication, or understanding of where our enemy was.
Getting into the action was all that was on anyone's mind.
We got shot-up, didn't communicate or stay together. There was no regrouping point, and in fact, no group. Good thing we can lay down a lot of firepower, because the enemy still was forced back by our uncoordinated attack. It's a good thing they did not have more troops available to reinforce that spot or we would have been over run.
As it was, our Hummer continued down the road, (after running over mines twice) and we flanked the enemy's position. They withdrew into the trees at the far side while we regrouped.
Poor coordination for our team. We should have had a plan going in, and in case things went badly.
From here our team returned cross country, North to Base Camp. As we arrived, we received orders to set a perimeter to the West of camp and hold position. Another team was to scout further West, where our camp guards had been shot at the previous night. Our command was in this scouting group.
Oct.15 Saturday Base Camp Defense:
We took up position covering both sides of the hill our camp was on.
This is where our radio communication took a dump. Completely flunked out.
Our radio operator reported from command, that we had enemy coming in from the South.
I pulled more of our team over to defend the South. You could see enemy movement in the trees.
The next report was: Enemy on the road! Engage enemy on the left! and Defend Base Camp!
We moved quickly to secure positions within the Base Camp. The enemy was moving closer.
The next report was: Get out of the Camp!
I hurriedly led us the 75 meters back to our original hillside defense. I am getting irritable.
The next report: Get to the other side of the camp! (the East side right in front of visible firing enemy).
With considerable determination (frustration and anger), I led the team right through the hail of gunfire and into position on the far East side of the camp as the enemy moved in firing on us.
A large gun battle ensued.
Twenty minutes of firing before they fell back.
I was forced to disregard our radio operator after being told to "get out of camp".
All reported orders after the enemy was spotted and began firing were questionable.
Our team was put in hazards way by numerous contradicting orders.
Combat needs to bring calm.
This resembled ants in a hail storm! All kinds of badness.
After arriving on the East side of the camp we took up defensive positions and halted the enemy advance. The enemy had to move away from the cover of the treeline toward our team which was taking cover in the "motor-pool". We had a better position . . . finally.
Scramble noticed troops moving up our left flank so I moved 100 meters uphill to cover our left.
Scramble remained in position and took charge of the team to repel the attackers. We used hand signals effectively to continue communication. Tank positioned himself, in cover, between Scramble and I so he could relay communication when needed.
Our six man team was spread over a huge area, and kept it from the enemy who was directly attacking the ground we held. We had lines of crossfire, good communication, hard cover (most of us), and we still got there before they did.
The enemy force pulled back and headed around our position by going uphill to the East.
This moved them around our left flank.
Oct.15 Saturday The Pusuit:
After regrouping with the other team and command, our entire force took off in pursuit of the enemy troops who continued North from our position. Once again our team fell apart.
Scramble, FlapJack and I pushed hard to close the distance between us and the enemy.
Kattiana, Tank and Seven moved at a slower pace and this effectively made our team two groups of three with my group closer to the enemy.
The lead group ran, and pursued the enemy to the base of a large hill.
(we could see the enemy approximately 500 meters away, near the top)
Our lead group was told to regroup at a rock outcropping feature to the West of the enemy hill.
We met most of our forces just arriving at this point. And our team was together again.
After a quick patrol, I received orders to search for a camera that was our objective in a ravine that circled the enemy hill. I was soon followed up by Kattiana, FlapJack, and Scramble.
The camera was an objective for the opposing Recon Team who now held the hill above it.
The Recon Team had gotten to the objective first; however our search had brought us full circle around and behind the occupied hill. We began moving up the steep hill, being watched from above.
Making our way up and around a group of us gathered for the final assault.
Assault team: Komissar, Kattiana, Scramble, Mud, Roman, Ichi, and FlapJack.
Oct.15 Saturday The Final Assault:
The first assault of our team went well in finding the enemy dug-in and waiting for us.
After the first wave, communications wavered, and we only continued to re-spawn in small groups.
Our combat effectiveness was lessened and it took an incredibly long time for us to uproot the enemy. Tank and Seven had joined the force which was attacking from the South, while we had moved in from the East and then South.
We were all tired from the 24 hour event. Most of us had pushed hard all night and all day. Three of us had run to pursue the enemy for several miles in full gear, the remainder had miles of hiking. Lastly, we had all climbed and fought to the top of this white topped hill to face a determined group of defenders who had prepared for our arrival. And we gave them hell.
I don't know how much this AAR will be to those who were there.
Maybe it's more of a story for those who didn't go.
After all this I can say, I am proud for having done it. It was fun.
To add on old laconic saying, "MOLAN LABE"
Views: 10
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by SCRAMBLE on
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I enjoyed reading that recall. If anyone has any personal recounts of the Motor Pool Battle or of the Battle of Red Top I would also like to read those accounts.
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This is my account of the night patrol Komissar was unavalible for. Oct. 14 2200H. THE HUMMERS: We set up and moved out on a patrol in a column of humvees; I climbed on the lead hummer but since there were no more seats left I had to cling on the roof hanging onto the side of the turret. Aaron was inside and Tank was in the turret with a tracer system attached to his M4. We moved out along the same road we had just gotten back from patrolling but this time in style. We hadn’t gotten very far when suddenly a bright green laser shined out of the darkness and lazed my hummer. I leaped off the moving hummer popping off three or four rounds towards the source of the designator while in mid air. I landed in the low brush and sand on the drivers’ side of the hummer and skidded out in the grey sand. Tank turned and fired a burst at the laser and from my position in the dusty sand with the hummer and Tank silhouetted by the night it looked just like the Iraq videos on U-tube. Everybody followed Tank’s lead and let the laser have it producing a very pleasing chatter of multiple guns laying in on the darkness. I almost got destroyed when Tank saw a dark figure hiding in the grass on the drivers’ side and called out “contact left” and almost let the entire group in obliterating me and another guy. The laser went out and we sent searchers out to make contact while the hummers waited on the road. Aaron and I moved out ahead of the lead hummer and searched the sage with my night vision under the careful eye on TANK. We did not find anything worth shooting at though there was a sudden volley of fire from the last hummer at something off the right and to our rear but no kills were confirmed. We continued down the road and turned back; I walked point with another guy about 50 feet in front of the lead hummer as we escorted our hummers back to camp.
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Permalink Reply by Komissar on
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Sounds like you guys did very well. Now I know what I missed out on. Nice report Scramble.
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Permalink Reply by Tank on
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sowwy about dat scramble.... my bad.... and the last hummer almost got sprocket almost the same thing this time on the right side of the road they saw a shadow moving (sprocket) and started to light the shadow up... sprocket and a few others were not very happy but were not hit. and to agree it did look like the Iraq videos it was really cool with the tracer rounds coming from 2 hummers it was lots of fun.... I was really excited in the turret..... hehe
SCRAMBLE said:This is my account of the night patrol Komissar was unavalible for. Oct. 14 2200H. THE HUMMERS: We set up and moved out on a patrol in a column of humvees; I climbed on the lead hummer but since there were no more seats left I had to cling on the roof hanging onto the side of the turret. Aaron was inside and Tank was in the turret with a tracer system attached to his M4. We moved out along the same road we had just gotten back from patrolling but this time in style. We hadn’t gotten very far when suddenly a bright green laser shined out of the darkness and lazed my hummer. I leaped off the moving hummer popping off three or four rounds towards the source of the designator while in mid air. I landed in the low brush and sand on the drivers’ side of the hummer and skidded out in the grey sand. Tank turned and fired a burst at the laser and from my position in the dusty sand with the hummer and Tank silhouetted by the night it looked just like the Iraq videos on U-tube. Everybody followed Tank’s lead and let the laser have it producing a very pleasing chatter of multiple guns laying in on the darkness. I almost got destroyed when Tank saw a dark figure hiding in the grass on the drivers’ side and called out “contact left” and almost let the entire group in obliterating me and another guy. The laser went out and we sent searchers out to make contact while the hummers waited on the road. Aaron and I moved out ahead of the lead hummer and searched the sage with my night vision under the careful eye on TANK. We did not find anything worth shooting at though there was a sudden volley of fire from the last hummer at something off the right and to our rear but no kills were confirmed. We continued down the road and turned back; I walked point with another guy about 50 feet in front of the lead hummer as we escorted our hummers back to camp.
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