THE BRIEFING
President Carter died today. This is my remembrance.
(The following is paraphrased as memory permits)
44 years ago, a small group of men entered the Oval Office, arrayed themselves in front of the President and, ultimately, received the OK to execute the attempt to rescue our hostages in Iran. This is how it unfolded.
In early March, the task force had completed a large full scale rehearsal in the Western US. MG Vaught, the TF commander, had reported to Chairman Jones and SecDef Brown that the force was ready and at its peak of psychological readiness. This was reported to President Carter and his advisors for consideration of a Go.
During these deliberations, Press Secretary Salinger indicated that he had a backdoor link to a French connection that was confident that a negotiated settlement could be arranged. Accordingly, Carter ordered a TF standdown while the Salinger initiative was underway. This had a significant effect on the morale and momentum of the TF personnel.
By the end of March, it was clear there was no substance to the Salinger initiative. That, combined with several polls, created a pressure on Carter to re-address the military option. On 9 March, SecDef advised the TF to be prepared for a decision brief for Carter on the military option. This became final on 10 March with a White House briefing on 11 March.
On the early evening of 12 March, the TF command group, SecDef and Chairman Jones entered the West Wing and occupied the Oval Office. The two divans facing the desk were occupied by MG Vaught and Charlie Beckwith on one with Col Jim Kyle, the Chairman and SecDef on the other. To the rear, Ham Jordan and Jodie Powell.
There was a simple butcher paper flip chart on a stand between the divans and the desk. The President came in, shook hands with the personnel, sat down and said crisply: “What is the plan?”
The briefer reviewed each stage of the event, the issues and forces associated and concluded his briefing with the extraction plan. A portion of the plan was the communications chart which showed the President would be talking directly to Gen Vaught from Wadi Kena with no outsiders. Only the Chairman/SecDef would monitor the call. At that point, Ham Jordan said that the system would not permit he or others to listen in and to provide recommendations. Carter said: “That’s right” and told the briefer to proceed.
At the conclusion, the President thought for a moment and turned to the personalities. “Do you believe the plan will work? Col Beckwith.”
“Yes Sir. We have trained for it and if we can get to the compound, we can do what is required.”
“General Vaught. What is your degree of confidence in this?”
领英推荐
“90% if we can get it. We have to do it in 30 minutes but I believe we can.”
“Casualty estimation?”
“I believe we may have 2 or 3 hostages killed as well as several Delta operators and a few wounded.”
“I can live with that.”
“General Jones?”
“The force is as ready as it can be. The helicopters are the key factor but we have trained very hard and believe we can do it.”
“OK. Go. God speed and you and the troops will be in our prayers.”
On 24 April, mission execution failed at Desert One at the cost of eight lives.
There is no lonelier or more consequential place than behind the desk in the Oval Office.
Retired Army Officer, Ministry of Helps
1 个月Hello, Keith, That photo brings back memories! That's my dad, MG James B. Vaught in that picture! The failure of this aborted mission was a bitter pill to swallow, but I believe Dad, COL Beckwith and the team gave it their all. Since they never made it to Teheran, the civilian casualties they feared did not happen, but the military casualties from the rescue team are what really hurt. The charred bodies of two of those rescuers by their ruined helicopter remain indelible. Cathy Vaught MAJ, USA (Ret.)
Director, European Affairs, the Association of the United States Army (AUSA)
1 个月Keith, thank you very much for documenting such a historic mission, to include the discourse in the comments section provided further details. Without this, it would be lost to "the dustbin of history." RLTW! Jeff
Happily Retired in Maine.
1 个月I remember this event well. Being a young Marine supporting the electronic warfare squadron VMAQ-2 on the USS Midway, I had the opportunity to fly to the USS Kitty Hawk for aircraft parts. To my surprise in the Kitty Hawk’s hanger bay, I saw a CH 53 with Iranian markings on it. I kept this to myself because of the classified nature of about what was about to unfold. I’m saddened about the mission failure and loss of life. To all who lost their lives, RIP.
Mortgage Loan Officer
1 个月He was a great American who we were able to look up to.
Over 40 years experience growing nonprofits both nationally and internationally.
1 个月I remember it well. I had served under MG Vaught when he was the CG at Ft. Stewart, GA.