Operation Currahee, Fight #7

All,

It is now 0430 on 27 July 1990, and the twenty paratroopers of Lt Villagrosa's ODA-212 have descended to earth below silk canopies from a loaner C-130 as part of Operation Currahee, the Cuban operation to secure space for Cuban reinforcements to enter South Leon following the full-scale invasion launched by Fédération Socialiste Nationale de Leon (FSNL).  Upon landing they formed up and assaulted any and all enemy positions identified (in the event, it would turn out that intelligence information provided by South Leon government elements, via Task Group Fulgencio, would prove quite accurate).  This is the seventh fight following the drop, and the enemy is alert and expecting trouble, and here they are actually counterattacking!!!

Overview of the entire battlespace (town of Gimbala, with Ruhala River running east to west), north is right.  This fight is taking place in the east (bottom center right), and this time the Cubans are defending!  An enemy counterattack is developing, led by armor, coming from the east (just left of the farmhouse at bottom center right) and pushing west to retake the town.  Cuban stay-behinds at the former enemy defensive position in the east (bottom center left, just left of the river) and on Hill 57 (bottom right) will try to halt the enemy thrust.

The good guys, all twenty of them.  Due to the strain of multiple deployments, the War of Liberation concluding only months ago, and the pace of expansion of the CLEF, this unit is more akin to a platoon of US Army Rangers than US Army Special Forces, despite being labeled an Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA).  The troops are lined up in teams, with each row (top to bottom) being a team: at far right is the HQ element, consisting of Lt Villagrosa, the Det NCOIC, and two medics, then team 1, 2, 3, and 4, each consisting of a team leader, grenadier, SAW gunner, and rifleman.  These are Modern US Marines from Flytrap Factory.

I have created a roster for ODA-212 here on the blog, it's labeled "Task Force Dusty," but please keep in mind there has just been a parachute drop and the teams are scattered and mixed together in "LGOPs" (Little Groups Of Paratroopers).  The Cubans are:

Hill 57:

SSgt "Doc" Miranda, one of ODA-212's medics, a former NYC EMT and CLA paratrooper in the War of Liberation;

Spec 4 Altuve, Team 4's machine gunner, he was a Sergeant in Castro's Army that deserted and joined the CLA during the War of Liberation, fighting with the 8th Popular Front Battalion.  Right now he's totally immobile, having been shot in the leg in an earlier fight;

Pvt Sanchez, Team 2's rifleman, he's the son of a mayor of small Cuban town that joined the CLEF after the War of Liberation.  He proved his gallantry earlier this evening, but he's a bit... awkward, and his lack of situational awareness saw him get shot in the arm by friendly fire;

PFC Machado, Team 3's machine gunner, he was kid during the War of Liberation that assisted a shot-down CLAF pilot getting back to friendly lines, then served as a Guide before joining the CLEF after the war ended;

Southern Emplacement:

Sgt Bautista, Team 2's leader, the tough former farmer that joined the CLA and fought with the 8th Popular Front Battalion in the War of Liberation;

Cpl "Doc" Eusabio, the other ODA-212 medic, a former Miami-Dade police officer and CLA paratrooper in the War of Liberation.

The bad guys, of which I'll be using between five and ten per fight.  These are Battlefront 15mm East German mechanized infantry, with two leaders, two RPK LMGs, two RPGs, and six riflemen.

Overview of the battle area, right is up.  At bottom center is the FSNL counterattack force, at bottom right is the Cuban emplacement atop Hill 57, and at bottom left is the southern emplacement, also occupied by Cubans.  The southern emplacement was taken in Operation Currahee fight #2 and Hill 57 was taken in fight #4.  At top right is the enemy trenchline SFC Medina just took (fight #6), and the building at top center is the objective he took in fight #3, while the buildings at left are the ones Lt Villagrosa took in fight #5.  Off camera at top left is Hill 60, which Lt Villagrosa took in fight #1.

The Cuban position atop Hill 57, which is the northeastern part of the Cuban perimeter.  Here we've got SP4 Altuve at far left, immobilized by a wound to his right leg incurred during fight #4.  Pvt Sanchez is at top center, also with red bead, because he was shot in the arm (by friendly fire) in fight #4.  Doc Miranda is at right and PFC Machado is at bottom center.  Also up there is SSG Ruiz, incapacitated due to a chest wound he received while they were storming Hill 57.  Altuve and Machado both have SAWs, which should come in handy...

And in the southern emplacement we have Doc Eusabio and Sgt Bautista in the fight.  Also there are the severely wounded SSG Tomas and PFCs Salena and Oviedo, all hit during the fight for the southern end of Gimbala (#5), as well as a wounded enemy prisoner captured in that same fight (red and white beads).

The FSNL counterattack force, heading west (right) between Hill 57 (off camera to bottom center) and the southern emplacement (off camera across the river to top right), consisting of a BTR leading eight infantrymen.

The enemy column moves west into a field, nearing the northern end of the town of Gimbala.

As you'll read a the end of this report, the bad guys are in a bad way, finding themselves scattered, under attack, and with very little information on the tactical situation in Gimbala.  All they know is they've been told to counterattack...

The view from Hill 57 as the Communist mechanized force pushes towards Gimbala.  "Dammit, armor!  We ain't got nuthin' that'll hurt that thing from here...  Sanchez, grab an AT-4 and knock that BTR out! Go!"  yelled Doc Miranda (bottom center right, senior ranking man on Hill 57), and with that Sanchez grabbed a couple anti-tank rockets, slung them over his (wounded) shoulder, and began heading downhill (center right).  "Altuve, lay down some fire, cover Sanchez!"  Altuve (red bead at bottom center left, with Machado below him) charged his SAW, propped it up on the sandbags, sighted in, and let rip, hitting absolutely nothing.

"Good, I was wondering if our boys on Hill 57 (off camera to top right) were awake," muttered Sgt Bautista, thankful to hear a Cuban SAW open fire on the enemy force.  With that, the Commie prisoner started getting a bit antsy: "Hey Doc, calm him down and shut him up, or I will."  Doc Eusabio went over to the prisoner (red and white beads at bottom left) and motioned for him that he'd best just sit tight lest something unfortunate happen to him.

Despite being under (ineffective) fire, the Communists continue to push west (left).  The enemy NCO gets on the tank-infantry phone (I assume BTRs have one?) and points out the Cuban position on Hill 57.  The big, eight-wheeled armored vehicle lurches to a halt and its turret spins north: "guys, I think we got a problem" hissed Altuve as Machado popped up over the sandbag embankment to have a look down into the valley.  Sanchez (center, just below the burst markers) saw the turret turning; his knees went weak and he soiled his britches as the turret stopped, seemingly locked on him.  He nearly passed out as the 14.5mm heavy machine gun began to bark.  Sanchez fainted, and when he came to a few seconds later he was on his back, lying in his own filth, staring at giant tracer rounds passing only feet above his head, slamming into the sandbags his buddies were hiding behind.  Sanchez whispered a quick prayer then continued shuffling down the hill, but as he slid downhill he could hear shouts from Altuve and Doc Miranda.  Machado was hit, he took one of those giant rounds right in the stomach.

As the enemy infantry fanned out around the BTR they spotted the Cuban emplacement on the south side of the river (off camera to bottom), and Sanchez couldn't help but notice one of the bad guy cocking his head in Sanchez' direction, taking a few steps closer to get a better look at the dark mass slip-sliding down Hill 57.

Having spotted Sgt Bautista and Doc Eusabio (top left) in the southern emplacement, the enemy infantry begin tossing small arms fire in their direction, to no effect.

But then the BTR turret spins again and Sgt Bautista and Doc Eusabio find themselves pressing themselves into the warm, moist South Leon soil, quaking in fright as the giant 14.5mm shred the sandbags in front of them.

On Hill 57, Doc Miranda begins crawling over to Machado, unable to take his eyes off the absolute mess that was his abdomen.  Meanwhile, Altuve (red bead at bottom left) sees an enemy rifleman (just behind the BTR) taking a look at Sanchez (center right, between two pine trees) and opens fire, hoping to help his buddy out.  The enemy soldier falls as a 5.56mm round slams into his right arm.

Back in the south, Doc Eusabio is freaking out from the BTR's machine gun fire, but Sgt Bautista, the former Cuban farmer, manages to pop up and pop a bad guy, putting him out of the fight.

Enemy rifleman continue moving up as the BTR again takes the southern emplacement under fire, but Sgt Bautista has wisely ducked back down next to Doc Eusabio and they're both okay, for the moment at least.

As Altuve's rounds skip and zing past them, the guy Altuve just hit in the arm (red bead) points to the trees, where Sanchez is sheltering, getting an AT-4 rocket ready.  A bad guy sees his wounded comrade pointing and begins moving up toward the stand of trees, firing from the hip, though Sanchez is able to carry on getting the rocket ready, which is taking longer than normal because 1) he's kind of clumsy, and 2) he got hit in an earlier fight and so one of his arms aren't working so well anymore.

The rocket ready, Sanchez (bottom center left) picks up his rifle and returns fire...

He doesn't hit anything, but Altuve (bottom center) loads a fresh drum and pours fire at the bad guys long enough to keep their heads down so that Sanchez can move further right (red bead just right of tree, above the explosion at center right).

Doc Miranda is working on Machado but can't get him patched up yet.  "Dammit man, fight, you gotta fight!  Don't you quit on me Machado!"

Down the hill, Sanchez (blue bead at bottom center) sets his rifle down and pulls the AT-4 out.

In the south, the BTR has let up fire enough for Doc Eusabio to get back in the fight, and for Sgt Bautista to pop up and take another potshot at the enemy's supporting infantry, hitting one in the chest.

Altuve continues laying down fire with his SAW while Doc Miranda, hands up past his wrists in Machado's stomach, continues trying to save the kid's life.

In the south, Sgt Bautista pops down, reloads, and then he and Doc Eusabio both pop and fire their M-16s.  Sgt Bautista hits another rifleman, killing him, while Doc has completely lost his marbles and is firing at the BTR, rounds ricocheting in all directions, causing no ill effect on the enemy.

When all of a sudden there's a tremendous BOOM from the direction of Pvt Sanchez' location...

Followed by an immediate POW!!! as Sanchez' rocket slams into the BTR, damaging the armored vehicle and stunning the crew.  Enemy infantry immediately return fire in Sanchez direction, and he hugs the earth as 7.62mm rounds impact all around him.

The enemy leader hops onto the vehicle to check it out: the crew is alive but shook up, and the vehicle is still able to move, but it's severely limited in terms of speed and turning.

From the south side of the river, Sgt Bautista and Doc Eusabio both let out a low key cheer at seeing the impact on the enemy BTR, throwing off their aim enough that neither hits anything...

Back on Hill 57, Doc Miranda works furiously trying to sort out Machado's innards, clean out all the foreign objects (the round, pieces of clothing and equipment, sandbag, etc...), and stop all the bleeding.  Machado's once shiny black hair looks dull and gray, as does his skin, which is sunken, looking like the already thin kid has lost about thirty pounds in the last five minutes.  "Stay with me, Machado!"

Altuve, reloading his SAW, steals a glance at Doc and Machado, and the sight of his comrades suffering makes him want to vomit.  He slams the feed tray cover shut, raises up, and cuts loose with a long burst at the enemy infantry below...

Cutting one man down and hitting another in the leg.  Sanchez (bottom center) rolls onto his back and preps another AT-4.

But Sanchez is too late, and Sgt Bautista's little game of pop up, fire, get down is played out.  The enemy leader screams at the BTR crew to get the gun back in action, and they do, immediately opening fire on the southern emplacement (top left), just as Sgt Bautista has finished reloading and is popping back up to fire.  A 14.5mm round zips through the top layer of sandbag and pops him the right shoulder, almost ripping his arm off, which is now dangling by a thin string of tendon.

"Dammit!!!!"  Sanchez doesn't know what's happened to Sgt Bautista, but he was hoping his first rocket had knocked the BTR out and he was just getting the second one ready for good measure, but he knew that if the damn thing was firing again it was bad news for his buddies.  Sanchez rose up, leveled the AT-4, and fired...

The enemy vehicle erupted in a spectacular explosion, killing the crew as well as the enemy leader, and stunning the four remaining infantrymen.

Sanchez immediately dropped the spend rocket, grabbed his rifle, and charged out into the field, capturing four enemy soldiers.

With the immediate threat dealt with, Pvt Sanchez escorted the four EPWs up Hill 57, where he found Doc Miranda and Spec 4 Altuve both leaned back against the sandbags, smoking cigarettes.  Sanchez' eyes immediately went to Machado, who looked like a scene out of a horror movie.  "What the hell!!??  What happened???"  "Relax," Doc Miranda sighed, "he's okay, I got him stabilized.  I sure thought he was a goner there for a minute, but he hung in and I was finally able to get everything clamped.  We sure as hell need to find the L-T though and get him and SSG Ruiz evacuated.  I hope things are okay south of the river."

They were okay, but not great.  SSG Ruiz, a tough bastard, sat there stoically as Doc Eusabio worked on getting his arm back on and stopping the flow of blood.  "No morphine..."  "What???  Are you insane?" plead Doc.  "If I'm out of it, who the hell is gonna pull security while you patch me up?"  Tough bastard...

Regarding the counterattack, please understand: a torrent of Cuban airstrikes by F-4 Phantoms and rotary wing gunships striking FSNL headquarters, communications centers, supply depots, and staging areas, coupled with multiple airborne landings totally wreaked havoc on Communist command and control within South Leon, frustrating their efforts to locate and counter a numerically inferior enemy.  In this case, an enemy mechanized company was tagged to counterattack and retake Gimbala, but the company was scattered at various garrisons and air attacks on FSNL HQ and Comm centers meant that not all elements received the counterattack order, and when those that did arrived at their staging area they were attacked by Cuban F-4s and AH-1 Cobras.  The mechanized company suffered heavy casualties, and those that survived were scattered and disorganized so that the actual counterattack on Gimbala was undertaken by only about a reinforced platoon, and even then it arrived piecemeal, so that when the lead element was annihilated the rest of the force simply decided not to commit to the fight.

For distinguished gallantry, Pvt Sanchez is awarded the Estrella de Plata (Silver Star).  Despite wounds suffered earlier, Pvt Sanchez exposed himself to enemy fire to move down Hill 57 into effective range of an enemy BTR-60 and supporting infantry.  Once there, Pvt Sanchez engaged and destroyed the enemy armored vehicle with rockets at point blank range, then rushed the supporting enemy infantry, capturing four of them and defeating the enemy counterattack on the South Leon town of Gimbala.  Pvt Sanchez is also hereby meritoriously promoted to the rank of Sergeant.

In any case, last fight of Operation Currahee coming right up.  Lt Villagrosa and a couple troops push across the bridge to finally secure the town of Gimbala and open the lines of communication between all the Cuban positions in/around Gimbala (Hill 57 in the northeast, the southern emplacement in the southeast, Hill 60 in the southwest, and the trenchline in the northwest).

V/R,
Jack