Kyle Mader kept a detailed journal and recounts his path from late arrival on ship to the workup grind, the convoy through Kuwait and Iraq, and two violent days that defined early Ramadi. Street fighting on Easy Street, shifting rules of engagement, and the game changer of an ACOG in gunfights.
• joining 2/4 Weapons Company and team makeup
• March Air Force Base lanes, MOUT, IED briefs
• flight delays, New Jersey layover, Kuwait staging
• convoy north, Junction City, Hurricane Point setup
• guard on North and South Bridge, spotlight “games”
• first IED hits and rising threat awareness
• April 6 contact
• April 7 urban fight with an RPG near-miss
• ROE shifts under pressure and target ID
• ambulances, taxis, motorbikes used for fighters
• Mark 19 impacts and battlefield aftermath
• ACOG accuracy, NVG lessons
• photos, journals, and sharing the archive
If you like what you've heard, this is a multi part episode. Make sure you listen to the rest of the story.
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If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088
If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.
All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM
