Operation Geronimo #2

All,

It's 0730 on 27 July 1990 and Operation Geronimo has kicked off.  The parachute landing went smoothly and Lt Espinale's E Co, 6th Para, AKA Task Force Hawk, quickly formed up and began pushing east, clearing the area of enemy forces and moving to blocking positions to screen the amphibious landings scheduled for later this morning.  An hour ago ago the TF Hawk commander, Lt Espinale, ran into enemy forces, insurgents of the Free Leon Army (FLA).  The Cubans suffered two very serious casualties, but killed six FLA soldiers, captured one, and destroyed a Technical, thus opening the route east.

TF Hawk continues towards its blocking positions when the point man calls a halt; they'd come to their next objective, so the troops posted 360 degree security while the leaders huddled up.  Just south of the road was a farm that needs to be cleared, but you can't clear the farm without first clearing the high ground to northeast of the farm.  Lt Espinale's group would hold place in support while Lt Candelario led his group to the north to clear the high ground (this fight).  Once the high ground is secured, Lt Gonzalez' group will take the farm from the south (next fight).

Overview, north is up.  The northern edge of the farm is at bottom center, while just right of it is a canal running north-south.  At top right and far right is the troublesome high ground Lt Candelario's group must take.  The dirt road runs from far left to top center right; there are a few cultivated fields throughout the area, as well as some boulder-strewn patches of rough ground, as well as a few stands of trees and plenty of bushes.

Lt Espinale's group is holding just off the map at far left; Lt Candelario's group will enter at top left and move east (right), looking to take Point 1 (high ground at top center right) then hook right to take Point 2 (far right), all the while trying to avoid any FLA contact to the south, likely located around the farm (bottom center).  The Cubans will begin the game off table, moving east each turn; the FLA insurgents will start the game hidden, only revealed once contact is made.

The opposing forces, with Cubans at left and FLA insurgents at right.  The Cubans are Modern US Marines from Flytrap Factory, the insurgents are Somalis from Flashpoint Minis, and the Technical is from Peter Pig, everything in 15mm.  I'm playing these games out solo using Ivan's "Five Men at Kursk," modified a little bit.

The Cuban force: two grenadiers, two SAWs, and four riflemen.  All the men pictured here will be in the fight.  The force consists of, from top left to bottom right:
Staff Sergeant Castellanos
Private Reyes
Private Martinez
Private Garcia
2nd Lieutenant Candelario
Corporal Iglesias
Private First Class Lugo
Private Machado

The FLA insurgents, ten of them plus a Technical.  As mentioned, they will start the game hidden, and I don't know what I'll be facing.  I use Joe Legan's 'blinds' system (a little modified), so this is the absolute most I could possibly face with my eight Cubans, but more than likely I won't see all these bad guys on the table.  In any case, there is a leader, an RPG gunner, an MG gunner, the Technical, and seven riflemen.

The Cubans enter the battle area, north of the road...

And begin pushing east (right)...

"CONTACT!!!" screams the pointman, Cpl Iglesias.  The Cubans are in two wedge formations, so I'll go top of the right-hand wedge, right, bottom, left, then move to the left-hand wedge:
Pvt Machado (M-16)
Cpl Iglesias (SAW)
PFC Lugo (M-203)
Lt Candelario (M-16)
Pvt Martinez (M-203)
Pvt Reyes (SAW)
Pvt Garcia (M-16)
SSG Castellanos (M-16)

Again there are bad guys everywhere, a total of six riflemen, an RPG gunner, a Lieutenant, and a Technical.  The riflemen are at:

-bottom left, where two of them are in the fields.  Someone in the farm (bottom center) saw something and ordered some sentries out to check on things to the north
-bottom center right, just right of the canal and below a stand of three trees
-the RPG gunner is just right and above that guy
-at right, atop Point 2
-the enemy Lieutenant is just above and to the right of that guy
-two more riflemen are atop Point 1 at top center right
-the Technical is in the farm at bottom right.  The Technical will not move, but it will engage the Cubans.  The whole issue is that the Cubans need to clear Points 1 and 2 without becoming decisively engaged by enemy troops in/around the farm, which will be assaulted from the south by Lt Gonzalez' troops once Points 1 and 2 are secured.

Looking north from the farm.

West of the farm, the FLA has sent two sentries armed with AKs to go check on movement to the north.  The Cuban paratroopers would much have preferred to be making these assaults during the hours of darkness, but it just couldn't work out due to TF Dusty making its diversionary drop at 0330 and the amphibious landings scheduled so close behind.

In the east, looking at Point 2, just below the road.  The enemy Lieutenant is just visible beyond Point 2, at top right, and they have two riflemen (top right and bottom left) and an RPG (center).

And then in the northeast, atop Point 1, two enemy riflemen are in position directly in front of the Cubans, where we see Cpl Iglesias (left) and Pvt Machado (top left).

And now we fight!

Moving ahead on Point 1, Pvt Machado (far left) spots movement ahead.  Cpl Iglesias (center) looks on, stunned, as Machado silently takes a knee, raises his rifle, and fires...

Dropping an enemy soldier!

But then, as the Cubans (top center) are moving on Point 1 (top right), a heavy machine gun (bottom center, in the north end of the farm) erupts from the south...

And the insurgent machine gun wreaks havoc!  PFC Lugo (bottom center) goes down, Cpl Iglesias (red bead at right) is suppressed, and Lt Candelario and Pvt Machado (yellow bead at center and top right) are pinned down!

Pvt Reyes dashes forward (center top right, next to the downed Lugo) to help...

But as he (top left) does, enemy sentries in the southwest (bottom center and right), dispatched from the north end of the farm, i.e., behind the Cubans, spot him and open fire.

Reyes (top left) is pinned, while Pvt Garcia (bottom center) spins and returns fire to the southwest.

Suppressing an enemy rifleman.

Lt Candelario (far left) yells at his men to ignore the threat to their rear and push hard for the high ground (Point 1 off camera to top left, Point 2 to top center), and so Garcia dashes ahead (center), up towards Reyes...

But a FLA rifleman atop Point 2 (bottom right, with Point 1 visible at top right) spies Garcia (top center) through the trees and opens fire.

Forcing the young rifleman to fall back (red bead at bottom right, from center).

SSG Castellanos moves up (bottom right) to rally Garcia...

But the other bad guy in the southwest (bottom right) opens fire on the Cuban Staff Sergeant (top center)...

SSG Castellanos is knocked down and Pvt Garcia is suppressed (white and red beads at center left)!  Pvt Martinez (bottom left) spins and fires a 40mm grenade at the enemy troops in the southwest...

The round is a little long, though it does manage to pin the insurgent (yellow bead, with Martinez at top left).

Martinez then dashes forward to help get SSG Castellanos and Garcia back in the fight.  Seeing Martinez' presence is enough to help Garcia snap out of it, and they both flip SSG Castellanos over and check him.  A round bounced off his flak jacket and probably broke a rib, but he's back in the fight.  "Help me get to my feet!"

As SSG Castellanos gets up (bottom left), Lt Candelario crawls forward to rally Cpl Iglesias (yellow and red beads at far right), and the Corporal is back in the fight.

But no sooner has Cpl Iglesias been rallied then the Technical (bottom center) opens fire and pins him (top center) again...

The bad guy atop Point 2 (bottom right) keeps spraying in the general direction of the Cubans (top left), hitting nothing...

But he (far right, with another bad guy moving up on Point 1, top center) gives cover for an RPG gunner to move up (bottom center) and launch a rocket.

A little short, it does nothing but shower Machado (top center), Cpl Iglesias (center), and Lt Candelario (bottom left) with soil and rocks.

In the southwest, the suppressed insurgent (red bead at bottom left) rallies up to pinned while his partner (right) slaps a fresh magazine in and opens fire on the trio of SSG Castellanos, Garcia, and Reyes (top left), to no effect.

In the center, a FLA soldier scurries forward, following the canal (left, with the RPG gunner at bottom center, Point 2 at far right, Point 2 at top right, and the Cubans at top center left).

With the Cubans (top left) pretty well pinned down, the FLA Lieutenant takes the opportunity to dash across the street (top right, from bottom right).

And as the enemy boss arrives (bottom right), the rifleman on Point 1 creeps forward to get a look, next to the body of his fallen comrade (top center left, from center).

But as that knucklehead pops his head up (top left), Pvt Martinez (bottom center) spots him and opens fire.

But the rounds are wide of the mark and the enemy soldier (bottom right)  hangs in and returns fire, targeting Machado (top center).

The rounds stitch dirt all around Machado (bottom left), but he's untouched.  He jerks his rifle up and tattoos the stone walls of Point 1, missing the enemy rifleman (top left) as Cpl Iglesias and Lt Candelario (bottom right) look on.

The enemy Technical (top center) stops to reload, which gives long enough a pause for Reyes (bottom left) to pop up, level his SAW, and open fire...

Killing the enemy machine gunner!  Maybe now we can get something going, thinks Lt Candelario.

Machado (bottom left) continues firing at the insurgent atop Point 1 (top left)...

Forcing the enemy soldier to fall back (red bead at left, from right).

But this draws the attention of the enemy RPG gunner (bottom right) at the base of Point 2.  He sights in with his AK and fires on Machado (top left, with the insurgent near the canal just visible at far left)...

And Machado is knocked down (white bead) as Cpl Iglesias and Lt Candelario look on.

The Lieutenant rallies Cpl Iglesias (bottom center), then moves to check Machado for wounds...

Pvt Machado is unconscious and Lt Candelario can't snap him out of it as Cpl Iglesias pushes up to the canal (right), trying to accomplish the mission by taking the high ground.

But as Cpl Iglesias (top right) reaches the canal, the bad guy further south (bottom left) spots him and cuts loose on full auto...

Rounds snap by the Cuban machine gunner's head (bottom left), but he bravely stands tall and returns fire (center top, with RPG gunner at top center left)...

The FLA rifleman atop Point 2 (far right) looks on as Cpl Iglesias' gunfire knocks down the bad guy at the canal (white bead at far left) and pins the RPG gunner (yellow bead at bottom center)!

As Cpl Iglesias moves up to the canal (far left), Pvt Martinez (bottom left, with SSG Castellanos and Pvt Reyes) bloops a 40mm grenade at Point 2 (top right)...

But the grenade falls harmlessly down slope (bottom right) of the insurgent on Point 2, and he immediately rips off a burst of return fire (top left).

But no one is hit and, following Lt Candelario's exultations to move forward, SSG Castellanos and Privates Reyes and Martinez dash forward (center/center right), hoping to cross through the danger area before the enemy can get the Technical HMG back in the fight.  Gotta get to and over the canal in order to take Point 1, then hook right and take Point 2, so that Lt Gonzalez can launch his attack on the farm compound.

But as the Cubans are pushing east towards the high ground (top center left), the enemy sentries in the southwest are creeping up behind them (bottom center/left).  Only time will tell if Lt Candelario's 'damn the flanks!' mentality will pay off.

But even so, things are not all that great in the east: that enemy rifleman on Point 2 (bottom right) is still in a commanding position, raining down fire on the advancing Cubans (top center right).  He squeezes his trigger again...

Knocking down Garcia (white bead) and suppressing SSG Castellanos (red bead)!

The RPG gunner dashes left to the canal to check on his knocked down buddy, and he's good to go, back in the fight.

While over on Point 1, the bad guy Lieutenant moves up the hill to rally his rifleman (red bead at top center, from bottom center)...

But the guy is still freaked out and he runs screaming down the hill (red bead at bottom center, from top center)!

In the south, a FLA trooper dashes out of the north farm outbuilding, trying to get to the Technical, trying to get the machine gun back in action...

But the other SAW gunner, Pvt Reyes (bottom left, with Martinez) was stationed there, waiting for exactly this potentiality.  The young soldier, still in his teens, calmly sights in and squeezes the trigger...

Gunning down the brave insurgent, just short of the Technical.

While to their left (Reyes and Martinez are just off camera, below that boulder at bottom right), Cpl Iglesias spots the enemy RPG gunner and comrade he just helped back to his feet (top center).  Soon the Cubans' other SAW is roaring...

The RPG gunner goes down in a hail of lead, and the rifleman is suppressed!

But the Cubans are still in a bad way, seemingly unable to get forward momentum to carry them over the canal and onto Point 1 (just off camera to top right).  Cpl Iglesias and his SAW are at top right, but everyone else is hurting: Pvt Machado (white bead at top left) and Pvt Garcia (white bead at bottom center) at both knocked down and in need of aid, SSG Castellanos is suppressed behind the boulder at bottom left (red bead), and Lt Candelario is pinned down, but still working on getting Machado back in the fight, or at least stabilized.

As he's the only one still in the fight, Cpl Iglesias holds his position (rather than charge ahead into the canal), while the Lieutenant works on Machado.

Machado is a little worse for wear, but he groggily grabs his rifle and helmet and rises to his knees.  Lt Candelario pats him on the back, then moves left to rally SSG Castellanos (red and yellow beads at left)...

But the young Staff Sergeant doesn't think he can take it anymore, and falls back (red bead at far left, from yellow bead at center top)!!!  For goodness' sake...

In the southwest, the enemy sentries continue creeping up (left and bottom left) behind the Cubans (off camera to top right), so SSG Castellanos (red bead at top center right) may have just hopped out of the frying pan and into the fire!  Like a @#$%, SSG Castellanos cries out for help!

Pvt Reyes (bottom center, with Pvt Martinez) hears SSG Castellanos' (off camera to top right) pathetic whimper and turns to look; he spots the two enemy sentries (top center left) and opens fire with his SAW...

The rounds ricochet off the gravel road but the bad guys (bottom right and left) hang tough and return fire (top left)...

Reyes is pinned (yellow bead) as Martinez joins the fight...

But he (top right) misses too, and the other sentry (bottom left, with the first off camera to bottom center) opens fire.

The rounds sail harmlessly overhead.  Lt Candelario (off camera to top center) is still exhorting his men forward, so Martinez (center) leaves Reyes (yellow bead at bottom center) to go check on Garcia and keep moving east (top right).

But the bad guy on Point 2 (bottom center right) sees Martinez' valiant dash to Reyes (top center left) and brings fire on him...

Martinez is pinned (yellow bead at center bottom, with Lt Candelario pinned above him and Machado at top right), but he's still able to check on Garcia, and he's back in the fight (bottom center)!

But it's still a disastrous turn of events: SSG Castellanos falls waaaaay back, still suppressed, doesn't do anything to deal with the enemy sentries creeping up on them in the southwest.  Instead he cries out like a #$%^, which causes Reyes to become engaged and then pinned.  Then Martinez is called forward by Lt Candelario, and while he got Garcia back in the fight, he's now pinned, and Reyes is now all alone.  And, gentle reader, in case you've forgotten, Reyes was the Cuban soldier whose responsibility was to be eyes down on the enemy Technical, in order to keep the insurgents from re-manning the heavy machine gun.

The firefight in the southwest continues, with a sentry (bottom left) firing on Reyes (top right) and into the backs of the rest of the Cubans...

Reyes is knocked down (white bead at center) by the AK rounds; Garcia (top right, next to the pinned Martinez) spins and returns fire over Reyes' prostrate body...

But he (top left) misses, and the other sentry (bottom right) cuts loose, though he also manages to hit absolutely nothing.  SSG Castellanos (just off camera to far left top) finally gets his marbles back together...

And he (bottom left, with Reyes knocked down at far left) raises his M-16 and returns fire on the enemy sentries in the southwest (top right).

Suppressing one of the sentries (red bead).

But while all that's going on in the southwest (off camera to far left), the FLA rifleman on Point 2 (bottom center) just keeps plugging away at the Cuban main position (top left).

Martinez (yellow bead at center, with Lt Espinale above him, Machado at top right, and Reyes knocked down at bottom left) shrieks as Private Garcia is hit and goes down!!!

Cpl Iglesias (bottom left, still at the canal just below Point 1) returns fire, but he doesn't have a great shot at the rifleman on Point 2 (top center right), and the rounds ricochet off the stone harmlessly.

As the bad guy on Point 2 (bottom right) hammers away, his cohorts at far left and top right (both suppressed) attempt to self rally.  The guy at Point 1 (top right) is good to go...

But the guy in the center decides discretion is the better part of valor and falls back to review his options (bottom left, from top right).

As the rifleman at Point 1 is getting himself back into a fighting mental state (far right), his Lieutenant becomes the third FLA insurgent to go up and peek at the Cubans around the north end of Point 1 (top left, where a bad guy's body already lies cold, from center left).

And once again Machado (bottom left) spots the enemy and opens fire.

The FLA officer beats a hasty retreat, suppressed.  But back in the enemy center, where no Cuban eyes are watching, the most dreaded action that could occur does occur...

The FLA forces are able to get a man back up in the Technical, and the machine gun is now back in action.

And here is his kill zone, full of beat up Cubans: SSG Castellanos (far left) ran like a @#$%, but is back in fighting shape now, though not really in a position to help out the main body.  Machado (top center) and Cpl Iglesias (top right) are also in the fight, but occupying fairly exposed positions.  Lt Candelario is pinned, hiding behind a boulder (yellow bead at center top) and Pvt Martinez is pinned, hugging dirt next to Garcia's body (yellow bead at center right), and Reyes is knocked down, temporarily out of the fight, next to Lugo, also out of the fight (white bead at center right bottom).

SSG Castellanos now realizes how badly he screwed up, and he wants to make amends.  He knows his going to draw fire, but he dashes up (center, from bottom left), looking to get a bead on the Technical (off camera to top right)...

But he's surprised to find there's still an enemy sentry on the road in the southwest (top center, the other suppressed in the field at top left).  SSG Castellanos opens fire.

Knocking down the target (white bead at far left) and forcing the other sentry to fall back (red bead at far right, from far left)!!!!  Now (maybe) we're getting somewhere!

But as that sentry is falling back (left top), the dreadfully expected happens, the Technical's MG roars back to life, spewing tracers north at the Cubans (top center/right).

Knocking SSG Castellanos on his back (white bead at bottom center)!

Lt Candelario sees his Staff Sergeant go down (off camera to bottom left) and is beginning to panic.  "Dammit!!" he exclaims, "what the hell am I supposed to do now???"  Friggin' officers, thinks Machado, Cpl Iglesias, and Martinez.  Lt Candelario slithers around the boulder (yellow bead at far left) and tries to rally Martinez...

But he's not mentally dealing well with the deteriorating tactical situation, so many of his comrades lying on the ground, broken and bloodied, and so he falls back, suppressed (red bead at top left).  "Dammit!!!" Lt Candelario whines again.  "Fall back, fall back!"  "Now how the hell are we gonna fall back, Sir, there are insurgents behind us, too!"  "Everyone rally on me, fall back to me!"

"What about the casualties?"  "Leave them, we can't lose any more men!  Fall back on me!"

And with that, the four remaining Cubans form a tiny perimeter, scraping out shallow fighting positions amongst the trees and boulders.  It finally dawns on Lt Candelario to check his radio; he brings the R/T up to his ear, where he hears his commander, Lt Espinale, calmly asking for a SITREP.  Lt Candelario screams into the handset: "we're taking heavy casualties, we are combat ineffective, send help, we're about to be overrun!"

Lt Espinale set about trying to calm Lt Candelario down, and trying to get a better read on the situation.  "How many casualties do you have?"  "We've got four men down!"  "What is their status?"  "I don't know, Sir, we can't get to them, they're just laying out there!"  "You don't have your casualties with you???  @#$%!!!  Standby."

"Here's what we're going to do, Lieutenant.  You and your remaining men are going to go firm and hold.  Say again, do not move, hold tight.  I am going to have Lt Gonzalez launch his assault on the farm compound, and as soon as he's secured the compound, we will pass through them and assault through Point 2, then Point 1, and then we will relieve you and your casualties.  So you hang in there, and be cognizant of your overs (outgoing fire passing through/over/past the target), we're on the way!"

"But Sir, we don't control the high ground.  Say again, Points 1 and 2 are in enemy hands!  Lt Gonzalez' men will get chewed up!"  "I know that, Candelario, but we don't have much of a choice right now."

So Lt Candelario, Cpl Iglesias, Pvt Machado, and Pvt Martinez are huddled into a small perimeter, focused solely on surviving until help arrives, while SSG Castellanos, PFC Lugo, Pvt Reyes, and Pvt Garcia lie exposed, bleeding out.

Lt Gonzalez was monitoring the traffic on the company net and muttered a curse under his breath.  When Lt Espinale called him up he responded simply with "on the way."

V/R,
Jack