Army’s 101st Airborne Division Pays High Price for Afghan Surge Year
- Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:35pm by
Scott Baker
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A soldier from the Army's 3rd Infantry Regiment, the guardians of Arlington National Cemetery, waits amid the gravestones during funeral services for Army Spc. Sean R. Cutsforth, of Radford, Va., a member of the 101st Airborne who was killed in Afghanistan in December, Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AP) — The soldiers of the Army’s famed 101st Airborne Division deployed to Afghanistan confident their counterinsurgency expertise would once again turn a surge strategy into a success but are headed home uncertain of lasting changes on the battlefield.
As the division’s 24,000 soldiers return to Fort Campbell from their one-year deployment, doubts remain in the military that security in Afghanistan can last without a significant U.S. military presence for years. The division brought effective counterinsurgency lessons from Iraq, but is still waiting to see whether those strategies can take hold in Afghanistan.
What progress was made in improving security and governance came at a high price: The division known as the Screaming Eagles lost 131 soldiers, the most killed in a single deployment for the unit since Vietnam, with many more wounded or injured. The 101st has been a force in America’s major conflicts since World War II, when it was first formed for the 1944 Allied invasion of Normandy.
The family of Army Spc. Sean R. Cutsforth grieves during his funeral at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011. From right to left are, his brother, Ryan, his father Robert H. Cutsforth, of Gainesville, Va., his mother Vickie L. Cutsforth of Manassas, Va., and his widow, Ashley L. Cutsforth. Spc. Cutsforth, 22, of Radford, Va., died December 15, 2010, during a firefight in Afghanistan while on duty with 187th Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
In the eyes of many of the troops returning to Fort Campbell on the Kentucky-Tennessee line, they spent the year chasing ghosts across mountain ridges and feeling frustrated by the slow pace of the nearly ten-year war.
“It is very hard to see change,” said Capt. Tye Reedy. “It was very hard to get that across to my soldiers.”
The 101st had plenty of veterans from the Iraq troop surge in 2007, where they learned to protect the population and isolate them from the enemy, a counterinsurgency approach drafted by Gen. David Petraeus, who once led the division during the invasion of Iraq.
While the Iraq surge was credited with scoring progress in that war, many of the division’s leaders said their challenge in Afghanistan was to keep soldiers focused in the face of setbacks.
Ashley Cutsforth, widow of Army Spc. Sean R. Cutsforth, sits alone after burial services, Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
“They have to accept that it was worth it,” said Col. Andrew Poppas, commander of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, which lost 39 soldiers. “It was a fight that needed to happen and no soldier died in vain.”
When explaining what the division accomplished in the year at war, the division’s commander, Maj. Gen. John F. Campbell, can rattle off statistics from memory — thousands of weapons caches found, thousands of insurgent fighters killed and dozens of districts with improved security. But the one figure he often ends with is the number of soldiers under his command who were killed.
Campbell kept notecards with the names and photos of each soldier, held together by a rubber band in his uniform’s pocket. By the end of the deployment, the stack was as thick as a paperback book.
On six different occasions over the year, the division lost five or more soldiers in a single event, including a helicopter crash, suicide attacks and heavy fighting.
In this Thursday, Dec 23, 2010 picture, Sgt. Benjamin Olivarez of Kingsville, Texas, with the 2nd Platoon Bravo Company 2-327 Infantry, tests his weapon at Badel Combat Outpost near Pakistani border in Kunar province, eastern Afghanistan. The 101st Airborne Division, a force in America's major conflicts since World War II, is seeing its worst casualties in a decade as the U.S. surge in Afghanistan turns into the deadliest year in that war for the NATO coalition. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Campbell described those losses in military lingo. “We had some very, very kinetic events,” he said after arriving home at Fort Campbell. But he said the hardships bonded the troops in an indelible way.
“Each time you go visit those soldiers after one of those things, they are there fighting for their buddy on their left or right,” Campbell said.
Some of the heaviest fighting came near the end of their deployment in early spring as they attempted to wrest control from insurgents who were coming over the Pakistan border in eastern Afghanistan.
“My company, or my two platoons, we landed on 150 hardened Taliban fighters and lost three men, injured another three,” said Reedy, 28, commander of Charlie Company, 2-327 Infantry, 1st Brigade Combat Team. “That’s one operation on the border.”
In addition to fighting, troops also worked to train their Afghan military counterparts. But the relationship was strained at times, especially after incidents like one in November when a lone gunman from the Afghan Border Police shot and killed six soldiers from the division.
Cpl. Andrew Barnett, 28, from B Company, 2-327 Infantry Regiment, said trusting Afghans was difficult, especially when his unit got an intelligence report that indicated Afghan soldiers were communicating with insurgent fighters about their positions at a combat outpost in Kunar province.
“It‘s kind of frustrating because we’re supposed to be nice and friendly and try to help them out, and we’ve got these guys who have infiltrated or are paying their buddies to give information,” Barnett said
But 101st soldiers also took pride in helping develop the Afghan military and police into professional forces as the number of AWOL soldiers decreased and Afghan leaders took more independent control over security. That will likely be the division’s lasting legacy after this year in Afghanistan.
As Reedy looks back on the tour, he tries to remind his soldiers that counterinsurgency isn’t a quick fix.
“Everything we do every day is building toward the end state,” Reedy said. “Leaving it a little better for the next unit and then they build on it.”
___
Kristin Hall can be reached at http://twitter.com/kmhall
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Comments (103)
Bushie
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 6:54amWhat and who are we fighting for in Afghanistan? SHAME ON YOU OBAMA. You are nothing more then a mass murderer of our children.
Report Post »The irony of it all is, their leader wants us out of his country. HOW ABOUT YOU SEND YOUR WIFE AND CHILDREN OVER THERE.
Gonzo
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 5:13amThey have given you freedom Afghanistan…if you can keep it.
Report Post »dakealo
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 4:28am“This and no other is the root from which a tyrant springs; when he first appears he is a protector.”
- Plato
“If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy.”
- U.S. President James Madison
“Terrorism is the best political weapon for nothing drives people harder than a fear of sudden death”.
- Adolph Hitler
“Why of course the people don’t want war … But after all it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship … Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.”
- Hermann Goering, Nazi leader.
Love your country, but never, ever trust government.
Report Post »nocomment
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 2:03amThank you all for your service.
Report Post »AnAmerican111
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:53amGod Bless the United States Military that protects even those Liberals who attack it every chance they get!
101 Airborne! One of the finest fighting units in the world!
Report Post »greatgalil
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:30amI will never forget the sacrifice those brave Airborne soldiers that gave for their great country. Huuwa
Report Post »Parnell3rd
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:26amAs a former Screaming Eagle of C company 229th AHB. I salute my Army Brothers and continue to pray for their Families.
Report Post »ChiefGeorge
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:20amThanks for your service and tremedous sacrifice guys!
Report Post »ComeAndTakeThis
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:55amDestroy the enemy by fire and manuver, destroy the enemy by fire and close combat, or get out.
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:19amWho is the enemy?……..I agree, Sir…..If we remove our troops tomorrow, who won’t be a wit less secure as a country….Our main enemies have always been from within.
Report Post »The_Outlaw
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:46amIt makes me sick to my stomach to see so many brave soldiers dying, AND FOR WHAT PURPOSE?? For the stupid and arrogant whim of a bunch of WarPigs within our own CORRUPT Government!
Report Post »BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW DAMNIT!!
Let the armpits of the world FIGHT THEIR OWN F’ng BATTLES!
riseandshine
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:21amHere here
Report Post »raspberrytea
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:26ambring our soldiers home.
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:23amAbsolutely…then kick out the infection in our government and get back to being the country we were meant to be.
Report Post »oldeagle101
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:21amGod bless all my brothers.
Report Post »Ron_WA
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:18am101 ABN (AASLT) always pays a heavy price – that’s why it so highly sought after as a duty assignment – one cuts their teeth in the crucible of warriors & honor. Not to say their aren’t other units out there as worthy but there are a lot of young people willing to prove their mettle in that DIV.
Report Post »greytdoghome
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:12amGod bless all of our military! Special blessings to the Gold Star wives…I wish there would never be another one. For the 101st…HuWah (different sound than the Marines)! My heart will always be with the 10th Mountain Division at Ft. Drum, NY!
Report Post »jeffyfreezone
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:08amI’ve been helping by sending care pkgs to Marines. You can read about the things they need I’n posts they make on the site AnyMarine.com. The last one I sent was a response to a post by cpl Patrick Barry on May 20th. He said they had run out of stuff to add to their water to keep them hydrated in 120*temps, so the Marines were going down from hyponutremia (drinking so much water it flushes out all the electrolytes), and that Marines were being medivaced out because of chafing so severe they were bleeding between their legs, and there were infection concerns. He further requested an ice pick so they could make holes through the walls of buildings they’d taken over so as not to expose themselves to enemy small arms fire. Y’all, PLEASE check out this website and read their posts, understand the hard things they are doing and SEND THEM STUFF!
Report Post »kryptonite
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 4:07amEff Obama for not providing for our troops, while he and his commie unions live like kings. Thanks for the post.
Report Post »rienheart
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:03amGod Bless our Troops. To hell with Afganistan, Pakistan and the rest of the Morons who run our Government, and theirs.
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:27amClap…whistle…applause….HERE HERE
Report Post »jimmythebullet
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 7:35amAbsolutely!!!!
Report Post »SAYNOTOSOCIALISM
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:01amThis has nothing to do with this story….. just wondering how many of you gun owners are “indexed” when you pick up, or hold a firearm?
Report Post »Netsurfer2
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:58pmPlease God protect our young soldiers from evil harm. Bless the people that keep us safe everyday and help the families here at home in making a better life for everyone! I pray that all the heart aches from soldiers being missed by their families will be consoled with the blessed hand of God and comfort the families of those loved ones whom have pain in their hearts from those that have died in war and in their families lives everywhere, for the one’s that they miss are always a part of them, in Jesus name Amen.
Report Post »cous1933
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:57pmSo terribly sad the loss of young American lives for what purpose? Nation building? The price we are paying is way too high (in lives and money) to accomplish so little in terms of the benefit to America. Pro-war neocons argue that we are safer here because of what we are doing there but I believe we are safest when our military is here, at home – for our defense. They (neocons) also profess to be spreading democracy but in reality our occupation of other nations often just breeds contempt towards us and is contrary to traditional conservative foreign policy. Un-declared wars of aggression are just wrong from both Christian and Constitutional values. Ron Paul will bring our soldiers home right away. That’s probably why he gets more financial contributions from active military members than any other candidate.
Report Post »LibertariansUnite
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:07pmAmen brother, keep spreading the truth.
Wars based on falsified fear, and anyone who objects them immediately gets demonized for being unpatriotic.
I find it unpatriotic killing our boys for some fictitious security.
Report Post »His Lamb is Satanic
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:56pmIf we had any backbone we would nuke the entire region and build condos. His Lamb is not the prophet of peace, it is Satan’s evil cycling through once again. Same tactics as vietnam, and no want of victory to cease their endless war. Obama is a traitor, and hates this country and white people. He lies ALL the time. Nixon had to resign for bad cupcakes compared with this high treason. Heads on Sticks! We must get rid of these communists and their clipboard toting militant queers. Screw “politically correct”. Call a spade a spade. A liar dies not “mis-speak”. He LIES! Obama is a Liar and a communist hack.
Report Post »mossbrain
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:42amYou think if McCain had been elected things would have turned out better?
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:55amHell no
Report Post »kryptonite
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 3:54am@Mossbrain
I wasn’t a McCain fan, BUT: He’s not a commie, he’s not a Muslim, he doesn’t hate America, he doesn’t pal around with terrorists, he’s not a pathological liar and narcissist, he is not an abortion activist, he doesn’t apologize to our enemies, he’s not a stupid bum, he loves the military, he fought for his country, he supports Israel, he stood up for the surge in Iraq which turned the war in our favor, he upholds Judeo-Christian values, his roots are in America, he is proud to be an American.
Not a fan, but absolutely! You don’t really understand how evil that traitor in the WH is, if you think it would have been the same.
Report Post »American Soldier (Separated)
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:49pm“he doesn’t pal around with terrorists” someone didn’t read the article right here on this website where McCain was in full support of Libyan anti-gadaffi forces who have known ties with the Muslim Brotherhood.
Report Post »techengineer11
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:55pmBring them home.. Nation building in the Middle East while our infrastructure crumbles at home is absurd! If need be leave a Carrier over there but my goodness how much sacrifice are we going to be required to make? Or should I say a few will be required to make because for most it means nothing.. Heck we are not even paying for it now.. We are so freaking lame that we are putting the cost on our credit card so our children can pay for it later..
If the average Mohter or Father were racking up credit card debt for their children to pay off when they pass you’d call it evil and rigtfully so but as a Nation we are doing the exact same thing and many are calling it Patriotic?
“If they are not attacking our Borders or our Constitution then it’s probably not worth fighting for..” Major General Smedly Butler
I couldn’t agree with him more.. Read his book. “War is a Racket”
Report Post »dcwu
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:32amConcur.
Report Post »40 Ford Ragtop
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:51pmThe real story is the political idealogy behind sending Americans to places where tribalism and corruption abound, and America is being purposely worn down by progressives who want to waste our resources, and our American lives in a staged conflict wherein WE GAIN NOTHING, but lose heart.
Report Post »They want our people to tire from constant prevention of victory. These Elite Banking tyrants want to grind us down.
If there was a real significant value in American involvement, then they would let us do what we know how to do-and that is to WIN. But they won’t allow us to win.
kryptonite
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 3:29amI agree, and it makes my blood boil. B*******!!!
Report Post »jimmythebullet
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 7:09am@40-
Report Post »truer words have never been spoken.insane ROE’s,prosecuting soldiers for doing exactly what they are trained to do and putting them in impossible situations with,at best,vague mission objectives.it makes me sick to my stomach.
it also reaks of a larger plan to weaken our military through attrition,by spreading them so thin rather than focusing on one objective at a time,and sending enough of them to overwhelm the enemy.BTW,i’m just an old sailor but even i can see that our first mission should have been to napalm the poppy fields.can someone PLEASE tell me why those “politicians” in uniform (i.e.“the brass”) haven’t figured this out.on second thought,nevermind.that might have ended this BS too soon with a “win”.
mac410
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:47pmWelcome home Soldiers.
Report Post »riseandshine
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:33amAnd know that all of us freedom loving Americans love you.
Report Post »shakenbake
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:45pmThey reject our help. Pull out and turn our back. If further provoked, Nuke from orbit!
Report Post »Stoic one
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:57pmAgreed
Report Post »mossbrain
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:40amI would try an intermediate srtategy of daily drone attacks before nuking em but yes not only Afghanistan needs to be nuked.
Report Post »Robert-CA
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:53amWe are paying a high price & nothing will ever replace these heroes .
Report Post »Please bring them back home .
freedomweiner
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 5:35amBring home our troops from foreign lands.
Report Post »Freedom Keeper
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:41pmGOD BLESS OUR ARMED FORCES! Lord, Keep Them Safe.
missionarydad
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:52pmAs a former member of B company 2-327th infantry also known as the no slack company, my hearts really go out to these fine soldiers and I sincerely thank them for their service. God Bless them fine soldiers.
Report Post »Stoic one
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:56pmAmen, thank you for you service.
Report Post »GBMBulletsSKNRD
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:57pmYes, very well said. And really all that should be said.
Report Post »missionarydad
Posted on June 5, 2011 at 11:58pmAs a former member of B company 2-327th infantry also known as no slack company my heart really goes out to these fine soldiers and much sympathy for them in the losses they suffered. God bless and protect these fine soldiers and I really thank them for their honorable and courageous service.
Report Post »GBMBulletsSKNRD
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:12amYou need not be sorry it was worth being said twice.
Report Post »Freedom Keeper
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:16am@MissionaryDad:
Report Post »Thank you so much for your service, it’s greatly and unfortunately under appreciated. GOD BLESS YOU
Justanumber
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:28amGOD BLESS THESE BRAVE MEN, in JESUS name AMEN.
SHAME ON OUR PRESIDENT and CONGRESS for putting these men in this situation.
Put congress and pres. O’ on the front lines
Report Post »and send home our military.
Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:45amGod above, watch them and return them home from wherever in the world they are at; the time is now that we need them here at home more than abroad. Please bring them home, for the current POTUS seeks to bend and break them to his whims…do not let him succeed.
Report Post »GeorgieJo
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:46amDITTO to FREEDOM!!!!!!!
Report Post »USAMEDIC3008
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:00amAll The WAY
Report Post »banjarmon
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 1:12amWhen BO gets kicked from office in 2012 send him to the front lines to clean and dig latrines!
Report Post »Uncurable wound
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 2:13amCome on home brothers,you bring your people Honor!!!
Report Post »kryptonite
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 3:25amThe bravest and noblest soldiers in the world!!
Don’t let it be in vain, Lord. Give them victory, and remove the oppressor from office. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Report Post »Showtime
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 3:34amMay God bless and keep safe our superb men and women in the military.
Thank you for your service to our country and enabling us to sleep restfully at night. Thank you, too, veterans and former actives. May God bless you well.
It is beyond me why people cannot keep from killing one another, why they seek to control. People who seek to control are out of control. (And if the shoe fits, anyone in D.C., WEAR IT!)
Report Post »wontbleft
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 7:48amGod bless the men and women of the United State military service. and my prayers go out to the families and loved ones who have sacrafice so much.
Report Post »wontbleft
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 7:50amGod bless the men and women fo the United States milatary services, my prayers go out for the families and loved ones that have sacraficed so much.
Report Post »TomFerrari
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 8:07amAirborne RAWKS!!!
Thank you all !
Report Post »LibertariansUnite
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 8:32amHow about instead of saying “God Bless our Troops” and forgetting about them, why not bring them home?
Report Post »Jacque
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 9:56amGod Bless Them ALL! My father was in the 101st and 82nd, and I was born in Ft. Campbell. This is so sad, because I don’t believe this regime cares at all!
Report Post »Dale
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 10:38ambanjarmon
Report Post »When BO gets kicked from office in 2012 send him to the front lines to clean and dig latrines!
—————————–
You may have finally found a job fit for an erstwhile community organizer!
noslack327
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 11:18am@missionary dad, when were you there. I’m C. Co. and HHC 2/327 mortars
Report Post »American Soldier (Separated)
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 12:46pmBring them all home.
I spent the majority of my career with the 101st Airborne Division. As much as I am anti-war, I have a very deep respect and love for the 101st. They were my family. We went through a lot together.
I recently separated. The unit that replaced my unit in Afghanistan just lost six people on memorial day weekend…..
May 26th, 2011
Pathfinders
4th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division
Runkle, John M. / 1st Lieutenant / 27
Mills Jr., Edward D. / Staff Sergeant / 29
Osman, Ergin V. / Staff Sergeant / 35
Bohall, Thomas A. / Sergeant / 25
Velazquez, Louie A. Ramos / Sergeant / 39
Patton, Adam J. / Specialist / 21
Perhaps all Presidents should carry a book around with him of all the soldiers, marines, airmen and seamen that have died under their watch…..
Report Post »Joe Palin
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 3:06pmIt took only five responses before you started blaming our elected President for our national militarism and spineless Congressional propensity to assuage neoconservative goals.
Please have some respect for out “All Volunteer” forces, the living and dead and wounded.
Only a small percentage of us “patriotic Civilians” actually care about our Military on a daily basis.
If we had been more vocal over the past ten years, every single day, this would have been finished and five thousand US military lives spared.
Report Post »JRook
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 3:52pmExactly, keep them safe by bringing them home. We don’t belong there. Make the terrorists bring the fight to us. Then we will be justified in taking real military action. These so called “sterile” conflicts that characterize our military involvements since Vietnam are disheartening at best. When there is good reason to fight we should fight to win. Unfortunately terrorism has become a convenient replacement for the cold war in justifying an absurd level of military spending and useless deaths.
Report Post »Jediusetheforce
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 4:18pmIt sucks to be in the Military with these clowns running the country!!!! Get out and stop nation building because the middle-east(Afgan. Iraq, Libya) is a waste of time. Stand with Israel!!!!!
Tempers Fly
Report Post »v-vet1968
Posted on June 6, 2011 at 9:30pmto all the fine men and women who serve this great country I personally pround of you and may the Lord keep you safe!!!!!!!!!!!!
Report Post »*************************
Posted on June 7, 2011 at 7:50pm“no soldier died in vain”
With the goal of the infiltrated Progressives (communists) seeking to collapse America from the inside by exhausting it’s man-power and resources, then it … EVERY SOLDIER HAS DIED IN VAIN !!
Rather, bring the troops home and target the TRUE ENEMIES of Liberty … Washington DC.
Report Post »