American Valor Quarterly Issue 5 - Winter 2008/09 | Page 35

attached to, held that objective through the day and following Smith’s engineer platoon, which had not yet made it into the walled
night. The next morning, they attacked into Baghdad International compound.
Airport, dubbed OBJECTIVE LIONS.
SFC Smith, north of the compound, deployed his small
The airport itself was secured by his brigade. Meanwhile, his detachment of men, the Bradley, and the APC when he noticed
company was attached to move in with an infantry battalion called that he was engaged against a company-sized enemy force. The
Task Force 2/7 Infantry. Their job was to secure the east side of enemy was employing mortars, RPGs, machine guns and small
the airport from the main avenue of approach (a four lane divided arms in the fight against SFC Smith’s platoon, and doing some
highway) from Baghdad. He was part of this blocking position damage.
just to the east side of the airport.
As his initial position became untenable and his Bradley withdrew
There was a long tunnel just to the east of the main entrance gate to reload, SFC Smith moved his forward detachment south, back
that ran from one side of the support infrastructure of the airport into the walled compound toward the main highway. He brought
to the other underneath the main highway. SFC Smith was located the APC into position and decided that it was here that he would
just to the northeast of the tunnel on the highway, creating a make his last stand. There was nothing between the enemy and
blocking position near the tall concrete wall that ran around the the battalion command post, which included a large number of
perimeter of the airport. His task force was out conducting combat casualties besides SFC Smith and his M113 Armored
combat operations, and had caught some enemy prisoners of Personnel Carrier.
war, so SFC Smith was asked to create a POW holding station in
his area.
SFC Smith knew what had to be
done, and he did it. He mounted
SFC Smith knocked down a part
the top of the APC and refused
of the wall just to the north of his
to budge from his position, firing
highway blocking position. Using
over 300 rounds of ammunition
some of his engineer equipment,
into the advancing enemy force,
he began to build his holding
killing as many as 50 of them. He
compound when they found that
was determined to make sure that
the area had not been completely
nobody got past him, no matter
cleared of the enemy.
what.

AMERICAN VALOR QUARTERLY - Winter 2008/09 - 35

USMC Photo

Realizing this, he put down a detail
As the battle ended, SFC Smith’s
of pickets to guard the perimeter
gun went silent. When his men
of the walled compound. They
found him, he was slumped over
Corporal Jason L. Dunham,
began to report that there were
in the turret hatch. His body armor
United States Marine Corps.
enemy Soldiers with small arms
had ove ȁ