When U.S. forces crushed Saddam Husseinâs Iraqi army in the 1991 Gulf War, many of the top commanders had been young officers in Vietnam and applied what they had learned thereâlearned not to do.
They included Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Norman Schwarzkopf, the top battlefield commander; and Barry McCaffrey, a major general who commanded the 24th Infantry Division. McCaffrey led U.S. troops on a dramatic âleft hookâ sweep around Iraqi units to cut them off from their supplies and an escape route. It was a quick, decisive victory with limited casualties, the exact opposite of Vietnam.
McCaffrey did two tours in Vietnam as a captainâin 1964-65, advising South Vietnamâs airborne division, and in 1968-69, commanding a 1st Cavalry Division company.
Born: Nov. 17, 1942, Taunton,âŠ
