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On 2 August 1990 Iraq invaded Kuwait, The United Nations acted quickly to condemn this aggression and through a series of Security Council Resolutions sought to restore Kuwait’s sovereignty. President Bush announced on 8 August 1990 that the US forces would deploy to Saudi Arabia followed swiftly afterwards by confirmation from the British Government that it too would form part of an international military coalition. |
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In November 1990, when it seemed certain that it would be 4th Armoured Brigade that would deploy to the Gulf, Brigadier Hammerbeck, the commander visited Field Marshal Lord Carver DSO MC who commanded the Brigade in the desert in WW2. He asked for advice. Field Marshal Carver told him of the importance of Combat Service Support, the need for the soldiers to get used to working in desert conditions before battle commenced, the need for flank protection and the benefits of employing armour en masse in echelons. For mobility the Brigadier Hammerbeck commanded from a Challenger tank.
Operation Desert storm was the name given to the Coalition campaign to liberate Kuwait and establish regional peace and security. It had two main aims, the first liberate Kuwiat by using isolation and attrition to cripple the Iraqi forces, followed by a flanking attack to defeat any surviving Iraqi force. The second was to destroy Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction in order to bring stability to the area. | |
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4th Armoured Brigade consisted of 14/20 Hussars, The Royal Scots and the 3 Btn The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. The Brigade was an ad hoc formation and with the exception of the Brigade HQ and 14/20 Hussars the Battle groups had not worked or trained together before. Brigadier Hammerbeck practised the Brigade until he was confident that it was capable of the operations ahead.
The ground offensive began on the 24 February 1991. 1 (BR) Armoured Division’s mission was to defeat the Iraqi tactical reserves in order to protect the American’s right flank. The land battle became known as Operation Desert Sabre. Although the mission was not the ‘main effort’ it was crucial to the American’s mission. On the 25 February the 4th Armoured Brigade crossed their line of departure. Within 100 hours the Brigade had achieved all its objectives and had cut the road at objective ‘cobalt’ in time for the conditional cease fire on the 28 February. |
| Desert Sabre was a success, initial air attacks had reduced the enemies effectiveness, this was further reduced by the use of artillery and multiple launch rocket system. Challenger was able to engage at 3000 m and with the advantage of ‘thermal optical gunnery system’ had the ability to accurately fight at night. The speed of the campaign and the limited number of coalition casualties, earned Operation Granby a proud place in military history. | |
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Click here to go to the Operation GRANBY Photo Gallery. Alternatively click the hyperlink in the Links window on the right side of this page. | |
