For Bill “Fenway” Wyman, Sadr City in 2004 was a strange mix of combat and humanitarian missions. Fenway, then an Army major, was servince as a a civil affairs team leader, advising the commander of the 2-5 Cavalry on how to win local trust, support humanitarian operations, and spur economic development. In this episode, he recounts a pair of events—handing out backpacks one day and hunting down snipers just a few days later—that combine to highlight the ever-changing nature of combat operations in Baghdad.
In 2003, Dan Stuewe was a platoon leader in the 101st Airborne Division preparing to cross into Iraq. With only a few weeks with...
In the spring of 2003, Lt. Col. Dave Rittgers commanded a Special Forces team deploying to Afghanistan. As soon as the team arrived in...
In this episode of The Spear, retired Marine officer David Berke joins to share a story from 2006, when he was a forward air...