Somalia streamer for 10th Mountain Division
The deployments to Somalia ended more than twenty years ago (August 1992 – March 1994) when US forces abandoned the failed state. I was at Fort Drum when the deployments began for the 10th Mountain Division. They went from a full stop to a sprint in the space of a few days to get troops to the shitiest of shitholes. But, it wasn’t until this last Monday that the division was finally recognized for their participation in what turned from a humanitarian mission to a combat operation.
According to the Watertown Times, the Division was awarded a battle streamer for the division colors for Operation Restore Hope;
[Secretary of the Army John] McHugh said he first learned the conflict wasn’t recognized on the Army flag when he was approached at a West Point event by a veteran asking about the omission.
“I said ‘I didn’t know it wasn’t,’” he said.
Researching the issue, he attributed it to unidentified international political issues at the time.
“It gave me a chance to correct an overlooked issue,” Mr. McHugh said.
The Somalia campaign streamer will be the 188th to be affixed to the Army flag.
Two 10th Mountain Division soldiers were killed during the operation; SGT Cornell Houston and PFC James Martin were in the 2d Battalion, 14th Infantry when they took part in the rescue of members of Task Force Ranger who were pinned down in Mogadishu on October 3, 1993.
Thanks to Luddite4Change for the link.
Category: Army News
I volunteered for Operation Restore Hope. I got orders…left on December 26th….deployed to Dover AFB…and that’s where I stayed. (Harumph)
We were sent home the end of April 1993 when they said…”Oh, we’re out of money and don’t want you going to active duty status as Reservists”…have a nice day.
/4 on 3 off, 7 to 7 and home on weekends. I can’t complain…
Three cheers for the 10th Mountain Division! Long past due troops.
And, in the category of Best Bullshit Line in a nonfiction war story, the winner is… “[McHugh] attributed [the omission] to unidentified international political issues at the time.”
Spot on!
The “International Political Issues” didn’t seem to affect the USN, USMC, and USAF from hanging the streamer on their organizational flags a long time ago.
This story sparked my interest. According to The Institute of Heraldry this is not the only Armed Forces Expeditionary Service Streamer that the Army has neglected to present to units.
http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Catalog/Heraldry.aspx?HeraldryId=15306&CategoryId=4&grp=4&menu=Decorations%20and%20Medals&ps=24&p=0
A couple, such as OPERATIONS JOINT ENDEAVOR and JOINT GUARD are perhaps understandable (USMC, USN, and USAF flew combat sorties prior to the introduction of Army forces after the Dayton Accords), other such as El Salvador, Lebanon, and Operation Earnest Will are a little more suspect IMHO.
FWIW, I think that the Army leadership just wanted to put Somalia behind them and neglected to issue the streamer. In their weak defense, they also had Haiti, Bosnia, and the hight of the drawdown going on so perhaps they just forgot?
We deployed to support the maritime counterpart to Operation preceding Joint Endeavor. We did Operation Sharp Guard, which was the maritime counterpart to Operation Determined Effort. The Dayton Accords happened when we were deployed out there. Operation Determined Effort ended and Operation Joint Endeavor began. Our deployment mission changed. When Operation Joint Endeavor began, be did the maritime counterpart to that, Operation Decisive Enhancement.
The platform I was on also took part in controlling the airspace over Bosnia-Herzegovina. That was our primary mission, the other ships that were with us took part in interdicting shipping in the Adriatic. Our main focus was on the airspace over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
It has been 19 years.
I don’t believe that that there were sea based operations going on when we got on station, we went right to focusing on the airspace over the above AO. The sea based operations started when Joint Endeavor started. 
I was at Drum then too. Well deserved! I had no idea the streamer was never added. Glad to hear that has finally been corrected. Those were interesting times.
Sappers forward!
Rip Houston
miss you man
Somalia Veteran here.
I remember the day we left Somalia territorial waters, the middle of the day on March 31, 1994. 
Its hard to get my head around the fact that its been 20 years.
I deployed from independent duty in KC on Christmas Eve 1992 for Dover where I got a shit load of shots and waited for a C-5 to transport my small unit. We left three or 4 days after Christmas and lost an engine over the Atlantic and almost landed in the Azores (load master was talking about dumping some of our trucks into the ocean)but made it to Rein Main where we spent a few days enjoying the beer and food. Then off to West Cairo Egypt and then to Somalia and a subsequent hot off load in Mogadishu and a night time trek to the American Embassy compound.
The 10th Mtn was at the American University compound if I remember correctly and the biggest thing I remember about them (I was a Marine at the time) was they stripped one of my HUMWVs that broke down before we could get it yarded back to our compound…I mean wheels, engine parts, canvas…the works!
A couple months later on the way back again on a C-5 we lost an engine and had to spend a week at Torrejon AFB Spain waiting for an engine to be flown over (oh damn), my wife ‘s dear John letter finally caught up to me (I was worried sick about my dog), and when we finally got back to the States it was a free for all trying to get to an airport that wasn’t snowed in so we could get home. I ended up catching a ride to PA then had to get a cab that cost me $165 to get me from the airport in KC to my house which by than time had been packed up and vacated by my wife (did I mention is was snowing like a bitch and about 15 degrees?).
Somalia sucked, coming home sucked, glad 10th Mtn got a streamer…going to get another drink.
Funny how humanitarian assistance military missions turn into combat deployments.
Skinnies gonna skinny whether it’s Africa or in the Caribbean.
I am a bit confused. When you say the “US forces abandoned the failed state…” Do you mean the State of New York when the 10th deployed or Somalia when we bailed or both?
Swing and a. …………..home run!!