Battle of Medina Ridge
Part of the Gulf War
Date February 27, 1991 Location Near Basra, Iraq Result Decisive U.S. victory.
Combatants
United States	Iraq
Commanders
Montgomery Meigs	Saddam Hussein
Strength
1st Armored Division	2nd Brigade of Medina Luminous Division
Casualties
1 killed (friendly fire), 30 wounded, 4 tanks damaged	186 tanks destroyed, 127 AFVs destroyed

The Battle of Medina Ridge was a decisive tank battle fought on February 27, 1991, during the Persian Gulf War, between the U.S. 1st Armored Division and the 2nd Brigade of the Iraqi Republican Guard Medina Luminous Division outside Basra. Medina Ridge is the name American troops gave to a low rise, approximately seven miles (11 km) long. The battle, which was waged over approximately two hours, was the largest tank battle of the war and the largest tank battle in U.S. history. It took place west of Phase Line Kiwi, east of Phase Line Smash, and north of Phase Line Grape. Phase lines are map references occurring every few kilometers used to measure progress of an offensive operation. Combatants United States Saudi Arabia Egypt United Kingdom & US-led Coalition Republic of Iraq Commanders Norman Schwarzkopf Khalid bin Sultan Saddam Hussein Strength 883,863 360,000 Casualties 240 killed in action, 776 wounded, 30 taken prisoner At least 183,000 victims of the Gulf War syndrome Est. ... is the 58th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ... This article is about the city of Basra. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_USA.svg‎ REDIRECT File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Elvis Presley Stevie Nicks Jodie Foster Janet Jackson Meryl Streep Jessica Lange Faye Dunaway Madonna (entertainer) Trent Reznor Diana Ross User:Mtiedemann... Image File history File links Flag_of_Iraq,_1991-2004. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_USA.svg‎ REDIRECT File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Elvis Presley Stevie Nicks Jodie Foster Janet Jackson Meryl Streep Jessica Lange Faye Dunaway Madonna (entertainer) Trent Reznor Diana Ross User:Mtiedemann... General Montgomery Meigs on a reconnaissance mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina This article is about the contemporary military leader and analyst. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Iraq,_1991-2004. ... Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was the fifth President of Iraq and Chairman of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council from 1979 until his overthrow by US forces in 2003. ... The 1st Armored Division —nicknamed “Old Ironsides”— is an armored division of the United States Army with base of operations in Wiesbaden, Germany. ... An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is a military vehicle, protected by armour and armed with weapons. ... Combatants United States Saudi Arabia Egypt United Kingdom & US-led Coalition Republic of Iraq Commanders Norman Schwarzkopf Khalid bin Sultan Saddam Hussein Strength 883,863 360,000 Casualties 240 killed in action, 776 wounded, 30 taken prisoner At least 183,000 victims of the Gulf War syndrome Est. ... Combatants Saudi Arabian Army SA National Guard United States Air Force Qatar  Iraq Casualties 35 dead, 32 wounded, 2 POW 2000+, 400 POW[1] Saudi National Guard american made Tanks during the Battle The Battle of Khafji was the first major ground engagement of the Gulf War. ... The Battle of 73 Easting was a decisive tank battle fought on 26 February 1991, during the Gulf War, between armored forces of the United States Army and those of the Iraqi Republican Guard. ... The Battle of Al Busayyah was a tank battle fought on 26 February 1991, during the Gulf War, between armored forces of the United States Army and those of the Iraqi Army. ... Combatants US Army Iraqi Republican Guard Commanders Paul E. Funk Ayad Futayih Al-Rawi Casualties 2 KIAs 12 WIAs 4 Bradleys destroyed 10 Bradleys damaged Unknown number of KIAs and WIAs 6 T-72s tanks destroyed or abandoned 17 APCs destroyed The Battle of Phase Line Bullet was one of... Combatants US Army Iraqi Republican Guard Commanders General Norman Schwarzkopf F.General Ayad Al-Rawi Casualties Unknown Unknown Battle of Wadi Al-Batin or Battle of Ruqi Pocket or Operation Red Storm was one of the battles which happeneds before the begining of the Desert Storm operations in February 15... The Battle of Norfolk was a tank battle fought on 27 February 1991, during the Gulf War, between armored forces of the United States Army and those of the Iraqi Republican Guard. ... is the 58th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ... See also: 2003 invasion of Iraq and Gulf War (disambiguation) C Company, 1st Battalion, The Staffordshire Regiment, 1st UK Armoured Division The Persian Gulf War was a conflict between Iraq and a coalition force of 34 nations led by the United States. ... The 1st Armored Division —nicknamed the Old Ironsides— is an armored division of the United States Army with base of operations in Wiesbaden, Germany. ... Iraqi President Saddam Hussein talks with elite Republican Guard officers in Baghdad on March 1, 2003. ... Location of Basra Basra (also known as Başrah or Basara; historically sometimes called Busra, Busrah, and early on Bassorah; Arabic: البصرة, Al-Basrah) is the second largest city of Iraq with an estimated population of about 1,377,000 in 2003. ...

The 1st Armored Division, commanded by Major General Ron Griffiths, consisted of some 3,000 vehicles including 166 M1A1 Abrams tanks. The brunt of the fighting at Medina Ridge was conducted by the Division's historic 2nd Brigade, known as the "Iron Brigade", commanded by Colonel Montgomery Meigs (a descendant of General Montgomery C. Meigs of Civil War fame). The M1 Abrams main battle tank is the principal combat tank of the United States Army. ... The 1st Armored Division —nicknamed the Old Ironsides— is an armored division of the United States Army with base of operations in Wiesbaden, Germany. ... General Montgomery Meigs on a reconnaissance mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina This article is about the contemporary military leader and analyst. ... Montgomery C. Meigs Montgomery Cunningham Meigs (IPA: ) (May 3, 1816 – January 2, 1892) was a career U.S. Army officer, civil engineer, construction engineer for a number of facilities in Washington, D.C., and Quartermaster General of the U.S. Army during and after the American Civil War. ...

Medina Ridge was one of the few battles during Desert Storm in which American forces encountered significant Iraqi resistance and found it extremely difficult to advance. The Iraqi forces were well-deployed such that they could not be seen by American forces advancing until after they had cleared the top of the ridgeline. This defilade position gave the Iraqis protection from the powerful long-range direct fire of the Abrams tanks and the Bradley IFVs. The American units found it necessary to engage an entrenched enemy at close range, which resulted in a higher (albeit still low) damage to the American armored units. Enfilade and defilade are military tactical concepts used to describe a fighting units exposure to enemy fire. ... Abrams is a city in the state of Wisconsin in the United States of America. ... In English The meaning of the name Bradley is: Broad clearing in the wood. ...

During the battle, the American forces suffered only one fatality and no fatalities were due enemy fire while destroying 186 Iraqi tanks (mostly Soviet built T-72s and T-55s) and 127 armored vehicles. Only four Abrams tanks were hit by direct fire and disabled. Not a single coalition tank was destroyed in the action. Thirty-eight of the tanks were eliminated by six U.S. AH-64 Apaches from 3 mi (5 km) away at night and in rain, and from U.S. Air Force A-10 Warthogs The T-72 is a Soviet-designed main battle tank that entered production in 1971. ... The T-54 and T-55 tank series was the Soviet Unions front-line main battle tank from 1947 until 1962, and remains in service throughout the world to this day, especially by former client states of the Soviet Union. ... The AH-64 Apache is the United States Armys principal attack helicopter, and is the successor to the AH-1 Cobra. ... The Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin-engine jet aircraft designed to provide air interdiction and close air support (CAS) of ground forces by attacking tanks, armored vehicles, and other ground targets. ...

Although the Iraqis used a relatively successful defensive strategy by deploying their armor right on the ridge, this action was not repeated throughout the rest of the war. In one incident, an Iraqi commander attempted to repeat what had been done at Medina, but mistakenly deployed his armor too far from the ridgeline. This gave the American units the upper hand, as the Abrams tanks specialize in long-distance kills and their Chobham armor is extremely protective to long-distance enemy fire. Chobham armour is a composite armour developed in the sixties at the British tank research centre on Chobham Common. ...

Medina Ridge was the largest single tank battle in U.S. history.

See also

• Desert Storm

See also: 2003 invasion of Iraq and Gulf War (disambiguation) C Company, 1st Battalion, The Staffordshire Regiment, 1st UK Armoured Division The Persian Gulf War was a conflict between Iraq and a coalition force of 34 nations led by the United States. ...

External links

• History of 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division "The Iron Brigade" at GlobalSecurity.org

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