Operation Golden Pheasant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Operation Golden Pheasant | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States Honduras |
 Nicaragua |
||||||
| Commanders | |||||||
| President Ronald Reagan | |||||||
Operation Golden Pheasant was an emergency deployment of U.S. troops to Honduras in 1988, as a result of threatening actions by the forces of the (then socialist) Nicaraguans.
Contents |
[edit] History
In early March, 1988, the Nicaraguan Sandinista government launched Operation Danto to overrun Contra rebel supply caches in the San Andrés de Bocay region, crossing into Honduran territory in their drive. The United States, under President Ronald Reagan, dispatched elements of the 7th Infantry Division (Light) Quick Reaction Force (QRF) on a no-notice deployment. The units from the 7th included one company from 5-21 Infantry and one squad of sappers from the 13th Engineer Battalion. This small force quickly landed at Palmerola Air Base (now known as Soto Cano Air Base) and moved quickly into position at a Honduran military base to facilitate the guarding of a local general. The 7th ID QRF were on the ground several days when the 82nd Airborne arrived. The deployment evolved into a live-fire training exercise, but the light infantry soldiers and paratroopers deployed ready to fight, causing the Sandinistas to rapidly withdraw back across their border.
The 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment and Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment 82nd Airborne Division, were joined by soldiers from the 2d Battalion 9th Infantry Regiment, 2d and 3d Battalions of the 27th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (Light) from Fort Ord, California. On 17 March, 1st Battalion landed at Palmerola Airfield, a Honduran Air Force base that was the headquarters for the U.S. military presence in Honduras. The 2nd Battalion jumped onto the airfield a day later, and the troopers of the 504th began rigorous training exercises with orders to avoid the fighting on the border. Had those orders changed, the paratroopers were prepared to fight, but the invading Sandinista troops had already begun to withdraw. Within days, the Sandinista government negotiated a truce with Contra leaders, and by the end of March the paratroopers of the 504th had returned to Fort Bragg.
[edit] Participating Units
[edit] United States Army Units
- 2nd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (Light)
- 13th Engineer Battalion
- 1st Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment
- 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment
- Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division,
- 3rd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (Light)
- 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (Light)
- 3rd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (Light)
- 21st Military Police Company (Airborne), 503rd Airborne MP Battalion, 16th MP Brigade (Airborne)
- 313th Signal Company, 3 Corps
- A Battery, 1/14th Field Artillery, 24th Infantry Division
