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Operation Charge of the Knights, Basra, Iraq
At the end of 2007, control of Basra province was handed over to the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF). A fragile quiet spell was shattered when rogue militias and insurgents made a violent grab for power in late March 2008. A joint operation, led by the ISF, called for US and British support in restoring order and improving security. It was code-named Operation ‘Charge of the Knights’.
This painting shows a scene in Basra before dawn on 4th April 2008, where Iraqi special forces engage gunmen in a house. Negotiating a series of obstacles placed in the road, a column of British armoured vehicles of the Scots Guards Battlegroup has arrived in support, led by a Challenger 2 tank of B Squadron, The Royal Dragoon Guards (RDG), commanded by Sergeant Chris Richards. As it turned left into the street, the tank struck two improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in quick succession; then, advancing up the street, a third IED exploded under its right track.
An FV432 Bulldog Mk3 armoured personnel carrier turns left into the street, and men of the Reconnaissance Platoon dismount. One man has a battering ram (a ‘thumper’) slung on his back. The Bulldog is mounted with the Remote Weapon System (RWS), operated by the Recce Platoon commander. The newly introduced WRAP 2 armour is seen on the sides of the Left Flank company commander’s Warrior. Armour similar to WRAP 2 is also used on the Bulldogs.
In the background an AC-130 Spectre Gunship is seen firing at designated targets.
Each tank in B Squadron (The Black Horse) of The RDG displayed a letter, instead of its call sign, on a blackboard. The call sign of the tank commanded by Sgt Christopher Paul Richards (later awarded the Military Cross) was ‘One one’; it bore the letter ‘E’.
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Printed image size(s): B2 only (58 x 38 cm)
Owner: 1st Battalion Scots Guards
Price(s): £70
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