[War] US: Ride to the sounds

[John Penta]

"Ride to the sounds"
8 July 2014
Assorted people
USA
================
<C17, somewhere over Azerbaijan>

Major Quinn Armedine couldn't help it. He was trying not to show it,
but he was quietly worrying himself sick over his battalion's mission.

Sure, on paper, it was a mission they'd done dozens of times.

In training, anyway.

In training.

It was a fairly simple mission - night jump of 1 BN, 504th PIR outside
the town of Yevlax. Assemble, advance on the town, capture it and the
outlying airfield.

Simple in concept, anyway.

"10 minutes to jump!" came the call.
----
<20 km outside of Yevlax>

Slowly, the Azeri partisans creeped through the forests, rifles held
close to them. Never had they thought they'd be attacking their own
hometown, but such was war. Unlike some of the other sectors of the
front, the American sector looked largely untouched by war; for what
reason, nobody dared to guess, but the fact that the town wasn't a
bombed-out wreck was a good thing.

Mostly.

They were mostly young, some actually teenage boys who had fled
Iranian roundups, and they were eager for battle.

The eagerness of those who had never seen death.

Their mission, as communicated by their commander, was simple enough
in concept: Take the bridge on the road to the airport, and hold it
until the Americans arrived.

Half of the twenty, half of those boys, would be dead by the time the
Americans arrived to relieve them.

None would ever be the same.
---
<C17>

"30 seconds!"

The soldiers stood up as one.

Soon enough, one after another, American soldiers jumped into the
night sky over Azerbaijan - the largest combat jump of American forces
since Panama in 1989.
---
Actions:
1. US forces, in cooperation with Azeri forces, to capture the towns
of Mingechaur and Yevlax.
2. Detailed orders:

   This is primarily an airborne and infantry assault - the idea being
to minimize collateral damage and civilian casaulties. In truth, much
of the work is being done by Azeri partisans, who are also securing
DZs for US airborne forces. Followup upon the capture of airfields
will be the arrival by airlift of heavier infantry forces to actually
take the towns and secure FAARPs for helicopter forces.