034: A Well Laid Ambush

Captain Paterson, August 23rd, 2000

A well laid ambush is a thing of beauty.  We found a spot where the road rose up to meet a slanting ridgeline in the forest.  With two days we had plenty of time to dig in the OTs so only their turrets cleared the ridge and camoflage them as well as prepare and camoflage fihting positions for all the dismounts.  Leo, I placed forward in an OP near the edge of the forest, to give us a good warning once the column appeared.  Alphabit placed charges on trees to block the road at the ridgeline as well as about 200 meters further back.  The plan would be to let the vanguard slip through our net and drop the trees to block the column.  Everyone was warned to be sure of their shots.  Wild fire would get many of our own men killed.  Then we waited.

The column was spotted towards the end of the second day.  They were pushing their charges hard up the road.  I expect they wanted to make the woods before nightfall for the shelter it would provide against the wind and rain.  Leo reported there were onlt about 20 guards riding horseback and 6 wagons piled high as well as the expected prisoners.  It looked as if they were roped or chained to prevent their escape.  I gave my troop last minute instructions and settled behind my M60.

The van, 3 men on horseback, were only paying cursory attention.  They trotted right through our positions without a second glance.  We should give thanks it was the end of a day of hard travel and not a fresh start for them.

The column followed them a hundred meters back.  As per our plans the troop sighted on their sectors, prioritizing primary and secondary targets.  Doc, Alphabit and Moon-pie would start with the forward guard and work their way down the right side.  One of George's men and I would work our way down the right.  The KPVs, manned by Eddie and another of George's men, would take priority targets, anyone armed with an RPG or a wagon with a heavy weapon mounted on it.  They weren't to go full auto unless things went to shit.

Just as the forward edge of the column was about to crest the ridge, I dropped the trees on them.  Gunfire erupted, taking the lead elements down quickly.  The sharp krak of the KPV ripping men from horseback.  They tried to fight back, dropping to the ground and returning blind fire, but it did them little good.  Soon, all the near targets were cleared and we had worked our way to the limits of visibility.  That's when we began to improvise and people got hurt.

There was a lull in the firing.  Doc gave a bloodcurdling yell, rose, and ran right at the column.  Alphabit, cursing her soundly, followed.  She must have caught half a dozen rounds in that wild charge before collapsing.   Alphabit, took cover behind a stump and returned fire.

Meanwhile, I had to shift further down the ridge, engaging a few men trying to flank the ridge.  I didn't have the time to set up good aimed shots.  Instead I let the M60 roar, swept their position with automatic fire, and let the consequences hang.  More than one fell limp and the few survivors went to ground.  Short bursts sawed through the brush claiming another while their fire pounded the dirt and sky.

Moon-Pie was the only one of us thinking clearly by that point.  He threw out smoke grenades to cover the prisoners before advancing among them.  A quick tap on the shoulder and shouted commands got the forward groups moving back to safety.  With the rest of us running around he took charge of the immediate mission.  Another grenade flew out of the cloud as he repeated his orders to the next group.

This was all too much for the guards.  Those at the back of the column remounted or just ran down the road.  All I know was there was a bunch of nothing by the time Moonie and I got to the rear of the column.

Later, Leo told me that he accounted for another six with the SVD.  Only two escaped, on foot, because they'd dropped their weapons as they ran.  He didn't think it was sporting.

Alphabit helped a shaken Doc over to us.  Her face was awash with blood.  Her helmet sporting a few new holes.  I could have chewed her out then, but cries of "Medic" were rising in the air, so I set her off to do her job.

Amazingly, Doc was the worst hurt in the squad.  The rest of us escaped largely unscathed.  Casualties were also light among the column, one man crushed by a supply wagon, another three dead of gunshot, and about half a dozen injured.  One of the guards I'd chased down had surrendered after his comrades fell.  Another five were still breathing after we treated our own.  More importantly, only two of the cavalry mounts had to be put down and none of the draft horses.

I've got to get these soldiers off the road into shelter, fed, and organized.  Busy night ahead, busy night.