Battle of 73 Easting - Plan

Plan

The 2nd ACR was to advance east, locate and engage the enemy and determine his dispositions and then allow the mechanized brigades of the 1st ID to pass through to finish destroying the Iraqis. The 2nd ACR's limit of advance changed during the operation. VII Corps Fragmentary Plan Seven, issued during the night of February 25-26, made the 60 Easting the Regiment's initial limit of advance. After 2ACR made contact with the Republican Guard's security zone, Corps changed the limit to the 70 Easting. Along that line, the 1st ID would pass through the Regiment and push on to objectives further east. Lieutenant General Frederick M. Franks, Jr., the commander of the VII Corps, ordered Colonel Don Holder, the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment commander, to locate the enemy and to avoid becoming decisively engaged.

The Regiment had its three armored cavalry squadrons operating on line with Second Squadron in the north, Third Squadron in the center and First Squadron in the south. The Fourth Squadron (the combat aviation squadron) flew reconnaissance and attack missions chiefly in the northern and central zones. Unusually for a corps covering force, the Regiment lacked a reserve tank or mechanized infantry battalion. Weather restricted flight operations severely, however, and kept Fourth Squadron grounded for about half of the daylight hours.

Moving through the Republican Guards' security area on the morning of the 26th, the Regiment encountered Iraq's heavily armored Tawakalna Division in the north and the 12th Iraqi Armored Division in the center and south. All Iraqi units occupied well-constructed defensive emplacements and had prepared alternate positions which enabled them to reorient to the west to face VII Corps’s attack. The 12th Armored Division's assignment to the Republican Guard was not known at the time of the engagement.

Despite extensive aerial and artillery bombardment by U.S. forces, most Iraqi units defending along the 70 Easting remained effective. The Regiment employed artillery fire from the supporting 210th Field Artillery Brigade, air strikes, and attack helicopters (both Apaches of 2-1 Aviation and Cobras of Fourth Squadron) against the Republican Guard units as the armored cavalry squadrons moved east through the security zone. Sandstorms slowed this movement throughout the day, restricting visibility to as little as 400 metres (1,300 ft).