Balloon Wars: An ISR* Operator’s Account Of The Wars In Iraq & Afghanistan * Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance by Robert Crimmins Robert Crimmins 5012 Killens Pond Road Felton, Delaware 19943 302-632-4972 www.robcrimmins.com [email protected] © Copyright 2014 Robert A. Crimmins 1 Table of Contents Table of Contents ..................................................................................................................................2 1. Overview ..........................................................................................................................................4 2. About Rob Crimmins ....................................................................................................................5 3. Photos ...............................................................................................................................................7 4. Comparable Works .......................................................................................................................9 5. Marketing ........................................................................................................................................9 6. Promotion .................................................................................................................................... 11 7. Chapter Outline .......................................................................................................................... 11 Book 1 Iraq ....................................................................................................................................... 11 Part 1 – Site One On Camp Slayer, Victory Base Complex, May and June, 2007 .........................11 Chapter 1 – PTDS Team 4 and the IRS Network .............................................................................................. 11 Chapter 2 – Unprepared ............................................................................................................................................ 12 Chapter 3 – BWI to Baghdad ................................................................................................................................... 12 Chapter 4 – Vince and Winston Have To Wait In Ali Al Salem .................................................................. 12 Chapter 5 – Day One at Camp Slayer .................................................................................................................... 14 .................................................................................................................................. 13 Chapter 7 – First Look at Baghdad ....................................................................................................................... 13 Chapter 86 – MealsBalloon By Inflation KBR ........................................................................................................................................ 13 Chapter 9 – Without A Manual ............................................................................................................................... 14 Chapter 10 – The mIRC .............................................................................................................................................. 14 Chapter 11 – Bootleg Software for the Troops ................................................................................................ 14 Chapter 12 – Battle in __________ (battle location deleted by DOD) .......................................................... 14 Chapter 13 – The FBI in Baghdad .......................................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 14 – Sectarian Violence ............................................................................................................................ 15 Chapter 15 – MND-B Headquarters ..................................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 16 – Site 3 Troubles ................................................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 17 – Muqtada al-Sadr ................................................................................................................................ 17 Chapter 18 – Judi’s Accident and the Balloon Loss ........................................................................................ 17 Chapter 19 – Team 4 Breakup ................................................................................................................................. 17 Chapter 20 – The Jackal ............................................................................................................................................. 17 Chapter 21 – Barry ...................................................................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 22 – Morning Explosions ......................................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 23 – Jeff Goes to Site 3............................................................................................................................... 17 Part 2 – Forward Operating Base Loyalty, July to October, 2007 ....................................................17 Chapter 24 – My First Night at Site 3 ................................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 25 – Major Morris and Captain Hurt .................................................................................................. 17 Chapter 26 – OPSEC .................................................................................................................................................... 18 Chapter 27 – Flight Director .................................................................................................................................... 18 Chapter 28 – Take Care of Yourself ....................................................................................................................... 18 Chapter 29 – Jeff and I Disagree ............................................................................................................................. 19 Chapter 30 – Rocket Attack With Judi ................................................................................................................. 19 Chapter 31 – The Pool and Other Distractions ................................................................................................ 20 Chapter 32 – Fire Brigade and the Grenades ................................................................................................... 20 Chapter 33 – Urge to Jump ....................................................................................................................................... 20 Chapter 34 – RETRANS Radio ................................................................................................................................. 21 Chapter 35 – A Million Shots in the Air and the Class System .................................................................. 21 Chapter 36 – Nightly Brief ........................................................................................................................................ 22 Chapter 37 – The Gas Gauge .................................................................................................................................... 22 2 Chapter 38 – Working Groups, BDOC, Defense Network Hookup ........................................................... 22 Chapter 39 – The Sniper Accomplice ................................................................................................................... 23 Chapter 40 – We Watch Mortars Launched at Us ........................................................................................... 23 Chapter 41 – Morris’ Planned Obsolescence Theory .................................................................................... 23 Chapter 42 – Second Rocket Attack and Judi’s There Again ...................................................................... 23 Chapter 43 – Kill Zone Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 24 Chapter 44 – RPG Hits Our Quarters .................................................................................................................... 24 Chapter 45 – Programmatic Failures ................................................................................................................... 24 Chapter 46 – EFP – September 1, 2007 .............................................................................................................. 25 Chapter 47 – Out of Iraq ............................................................................................................................................ 25 Chapter 48 – Greece .................................................................................................................................................... 25 Chapter 49 – Surprise! ............................................................................................................................................... 26 ................................................................................................................ 26 Chapter 51 – A Sheikh