Task Force Viking
|
Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force - North |
|
|---|---|
| active | 2002 to 2003 |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Armed forces | United States Armed Forces |
| Armed forces | overarching |
| Branch of service | Special forces |
| Subordinate troops |
|
| Strength | unknown |
| Insinuation | Operation Iraqi Freedom |
| Nickname | Task Force Viking |
Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force - North (JSOTF-N), also known by the code name Task Force Viking , was a US task force that carried out military operations against the Iraqi forces in parts of Kurdistan and parts of Kurdistan in the early stages of the American-led invasion of Iraq Northern Iraq performed. Your military mission was to occupy the cities of Kirkuk and Mosul as well as the northern oil fields of Iraq and to bind the 13th Iraqi Army Division spatially in the north, in order to prevent their support in the defense of Baghdad and to avoid the Iraqi units in the defense against the Americans and British attacking southwards. For this purpose, the Task Force Viking was deployed in operations of unconventional warfare, special reconnaissance, direct action and air-to-ground support in order to spatially allocate the Iraqi units along the "Green Line", the demarcation line between Kurdistan and Iraq that has nominally existed since 1991 tie.
Involved units and preparation for operations
Before the start of the invasion, most of the units of the Task Force Viking were concentrated in Constanta (Romania) in February 2003. Conceptually, this task force should consist of conventional units (paratroopers, marines) and special forces (US Army Special Forces, CIA Special Actions Division) and be led under the command of the United States Special Operations Command .
Opposing forces
On the Iraqi side, two divisions of the Iraqi Republic Guard, two mechanized infantry divisions, one armored division, eight infantry divisions and militias of the Fedayeen Saddam were deployed in the north of the country. In addition, paramilitary groups of Ansar-al-Islam, Ansar-al-Sunna and the PKK as well as various Kurdish, Turkmen and Sunni factions operated in the border area between Iraq and Kurdistan, some of which were fighting for supremacy in the northern Iraqi region after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein fought.
Mission concept
Due to Turkey's refusal to authorize the invasion of Iraq by land and air forces over Turkish territory, the leadership of the coalition forces decided to carry out an air infiltration of Task Force Viking over Jordan. First of all, from March 20, 2003, special units of the task force were brought into the operational area with MC-130 Combat Talon I aircraft as part of "Operation Ugly Baby". This was the longest infiltration of US forces troops since the end of World War II. After Turkey finally approved the use of its territory for military operations, further American special forces were brought to Northern Iraq, so that at the beginning of the regular fighting, 50 self-sufficient ODA teams (Operational Detachment Alpha) of the American special forces were on site. On March 29, 2003, these units were supported by the 173rd Airborne Brigade, which took the airport of Bashur (40 km north of the "Green Line") in a parachute jump. This was the largest airborne landing operation by the US Forces since the end of World War II. The occupation of the airfield enabled the 1st Infantry Division and then the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit to be brought into the operational area with aircraft from April 7th.
Controversy over the use of Turkish troops
Shortly after the conquest of Kirkuk on April 10, Turkey began to deploy its own special forces, disguised as members of an aid organization, in the area. She wanted to train and equip the paramilitary "Iraqi Turkman Front" in order to destabilize Kurdistan and thus deploy her own "peacekeeping forces" in the region in the long term. Parts of the 173rd Airborne Brigade uncovered this plot and brought the Turkish military personnel back to their country.
literature
- Global Scouts (PDF (fm PowerPoint); 2.4 MB) In: NDIA Symposium . US Army Special Operations Command . February 5, 2004. Retrieved December 16, 2008.
- Tunnell, Lieutenant Colonel Harry D. IV: Red Devils: Tactical Perspectives from Iraq (PDF), Combat Studies Institute Press, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas 2006 (accessed December 16, 2008). 1 / 508th PIR
- Krump, Captain Jamie L .: Joint and Expeditionary Fuel Logistics in Northern Iraq (Quartermaster Commentary) . In: US Army Quartermaster Center and School (Ed.): Quartermaster Professional Bulletin . , Fort Lee, Virginia Winter 2004. ISSN 0896-9795 .
- Brown. General Bryan D .: THE SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND BUDGET REQUEST FOR FISCAL YEAR 2005 . House Armed Services Committee . March 11, 2004. Retrieved December 16, 2008.
- 173rd Airborne Brigade - History . US Army . Retrieved December 16, 2008.
- 1st Infantry Division: History (Operation Iraqi Freedom) . US 1st Infantry Division . Archived from the original on July 7, 2007. Retrieved December 16, 2008.
- Linda Robinson: Chapter 13: Viking Hammer (and the Ugly Baby) . In: Masters of Chaos: The Secret History of the Special Forces . PublicAffairs, 2005, ISBN 978-1-58648-352-4 , p. 296 et seq. (Accessed December 16, 2008).
Individual evidence
- ↑ Eric Schmitt, Dexter Filkins : THREATS AND RESPONSES: TURKEY; Erdogan, Turkish Party Leader, to Form Government as US Presses for Use of Bases . In: New York Times , March 12, 2003. Retrieved December 16, 2008. "American military does not yet have approval to use Turkish air bases or airspace for an attack on Iraq ..."