HQ$History - United States Special Operations Command

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Operation IRAQI FREEDOM Planning U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) began planning for the invasion of Iraq in January 2002. Dubbed operations plan (OPLAN) 1003V, the plan called for a simultaneous attack from five different directions. Conventional land forces would attack out of Kuwait, led by mounted forces from the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry Division (ID) and the U.S. Marine Corps’ I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). Coalition air forces would attack deep targets from Saudi Arabia and carriers in the Persian Gulf. The plan called for an information operations (IO) campaign that barraged the Iraqi airwaves with surrender appeals. From Kuwait, Naval Special Operations Forces would seize oil and gas platforms and secure oil facilities on the Al Faw Peninsula. SOF would execute operations on the two remaining fronts, attacking from Kurdish held areas in the north and inserting into the Iraqi desert. CENTCOM designated the Combined Forces Land Component Command (CFLCC) as the supported force for the invasion. Special O p e r a t i o n s Command, Central (SOCCENT) was assigned its apportioned forces and began constructing its campaign plan. It planned to insert a CJSOTF into K u r d i s h Autonomous Zone (KAZ) in northern Iraq to leverage Kurdish forces in tying down several Iraqi Corps in the north. The 10th SFG (A) would constitute the crux of this organization, CJSOTF-North (CJSOTF-N), and conduct unconventional warfare (UW) through, by, and with the Kurdish forces, the Peshmerga. The 10th SFG (A) deployed its two stateside battalions (2/10th SFG (A) and 3/10th SFG (A) and received 3rd Battalion, 3rd SFG (A) to round out its combat power. The 10th SFG (A) also received a robust planning component from the 352nd Special Operations Group (SOG) to perform the mission of Joint Special Operations Air Detachment. SOCCENT assigned 5th SFG (A) the task of establishing CJSOTF-West (CJSOTF-W), and its three battalions would constitute the bulk of the task force (TF). As operations approached, CJSOTF-W grew to include Australian and British SOF, Psychological Operations (PSYOP) elements from B Company, 9th PSYOP Battalion, and 301st PSYOP Company, with 121
Civil Affairs (CA) augmentation. The CJSOTF planned to search for and destroy SCUD missiles in the western desert. In previous editions of OPLAN 1003, SOCCENT envisioned CJSOTF-W organizing and employing regime opposition groups in southern Iraq, but CENTCOM’s latest plan envisioned a rapid seizure of Baghdad, which would obviate the requirement for organizing insurgent forces against Saddam. CJSOTF-W’s mission in southern Iraq subsequently changed to supporting CFLCC’s assault north, to include the provision of intelligence and SOF seizing terrain. To its credit, SOCCENT had learned a great deal from the understaffing of TFs DAGGER and K-BAR during the initial phases of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan. It determined not to make the same mistake in Iraq, instructing allocated forces to build joint manning documents (JMDs) to reflect their needs. Each SOF headquarters was more sufficiently staffed with air planners, PSYOP, CA, and coalition liaison officers (LNOs). As important, both CJSOTFs had enough personnel to provide LNOs to conventional force commands, enabling SOF to synchronize its operations with CFLCC forces. Consequently, the various SOF TFs were better prepared to conduct joint special operations. Other U.S. SOF would also perform essential roles in Operation IRAQI FREEDOM (OIF). In late 2002 and early 2003, CENTCOM added additional SOF forces to compensate for the relative paucity of conventional forces. The 75th Ranger Regiment was assigned numerous missions to secure key terrain along the outskirts of Baghdad to facilitate the mounted advance of 3rd ID. Other coalition special operations forces (CSOF) forces were assigned SR missions deep within Iraq to target Iraqi maneuver forces. SOCCENT also had OPCON of Naval Special Warfare Task Group–CENTCOM (NSWTG-CENT), tasking it to secure oil and gas facilities on the Al Faw Peninsula and two oil platforms off the Iraqi coast; NSWTG-CENT also supported the Combined Force Maritime Component Command (CFMCC) in the execution of various missions. SOF aviation from both the 160th SOAR (A) and 352nd SOG would support various infiltrations during the course of the invasion. As events unfolded, all SOF elements would have to execute numerous inherent tasks that included attacking Iraqi forces, seizing key infrastructure, and preventing the destruction of critical nodes. Although conducting shaping operations in support of CFLCC, SOF often found itself in the supported role during the initial stages of combat. Map of General Franks’ five fronts of attack. 122 The Invasion OIF formally commenced the night of 19 March 2003, and SOF played a critical role in defeating Iraqi forces throughout the battlespace. OIF represented the largest commitment of SOF to an operation since the inception of USSOCOM. SOF aquitted
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HISTORY 6th Edition
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1968 - The future home of U.S. Stri
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General James J. Lindsay accepting
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Senator Sam Nunn (D-GA) Senator Wil
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USSOCOM Commanders There have been
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the impact on its people, the comma
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Mission and Organization USSOCOM’
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Logistics (SOAL). Finally, the Chie
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During the review process for the 2
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HQ USSOCOM Organization Chart 2006
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greatly improved the command’s ab
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(7) JMISC continued to provide PSYO
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USSOCOM’s MFP-11. By FY 2006, the
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forming its acquisition functions a
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nature were key goals in addition t
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COMMANDER’S TOP PRIORITIES FOR FY
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President George W. Bush signed the
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Iran Ajr, caught laying mines, was
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The invasion of Panama, known as Op
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Capturing Torrijos/Tocumen was cruc
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ful seizure of the Torrijos/Tocumen
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second pass, one pilot saw movement
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Harbor by having SEALs place demoli
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BLACK elements returned to Albrook
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Noriega’s Surrender: After his ap
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joint training with NSWTG small boa
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Special Tactics Teams train during
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Schwarzkopf that he and AFSOCCENT w
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SCUD hunting patrol in western Iraq
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In January 1981, the FMLN (Farabund
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HOPE. On 12 January 1993, a Special
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missions into Mogadishu, all of whi
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Haiti had endured unremitting polit
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of Haiti. These themes stressed nat
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In the early 1990s, rival ethnic st
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Page 85 and 86: Operation FIRM RESPONSE, ESAT vehic
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Page 95 and 96: Objective Rhino, a desert landing s
Page 97 and 98: ather than target coordinates into
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Page 101 and 102: 100 Despite what, in retrospect, ma
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Page 109 and 110: not designed to form a JSOTF. DAGGE
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Page 113 and 114: During 2003, however, Afghanistan s
Page 115 and 116: east of the city of Khowst. While b
Page 117 and 118: Operation RED WINGS LT Michael P. M
Page 119 and 120: their combat operations in southern
Page 121: Force (SOTF) 71 was CJSOTF’s batt
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Page 127 and 128: TEXACO) and metering and manifold s
Page 129 and 130: accordance with his importance, Sad
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Page 133 and 134: with Iraqi police units. SOF have c
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Page 139 and 140: Operation ENDURING FREEDOM Trans-Sa
Page 141 and 142: Training in Yemen In December 2005,
Page 143 and 144: esulting operation known as Balikat
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Page 149 and 150: Command, Central SOCEUR....Special
Page 151 and 152: AQIZ: 134, 135 Al Qaim: 127, 136 Al
Page 153 and 154: Guatemala: 75 H Haditha: 127, 129 H
Page 155 and 156: 47, 48 Northern Alliance: 91, 92, 9
Page 157: United Arab Emirates: 73, 118, 119,
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HQ$History - United States Special Operations Command

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