‘Friendly fire’ blamed in deadly ‘03 incident

Robert Burns

Monday, March 29, 2004 | 11:37 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- The worst "friendly fire" incident of the Iraq war was triggered by a Marine air controller who mistakenly cleared Air Force attack planes to shoot at U.S. positions, killing as many as 10 Marines, officials said today.

The incident happened March 23, 2003, on the fourth day of the war, near the city of Nasiriyah in southern Iraq amid a chaotic battle with Iraqi forces in which a total of 18 Marines, including Lance Cpl. Donald J. Cline of Sparks, were killed.

His widow, Tina, was briefed by two Marines officials Saturday. She told the Reno Gazette-Journal she was told the cause of his death is "indeterminable."

"It's open still," Cline said. "I'm so sick of not being told the truth right away."

U.S. Central Command, which investigated the matter, said it planned to publicly release its final report after the last of the Marine families involved had been briefed on it today. The investigation's findings were first reported Sunday by the Los Angeles Times and the Baltimore Sun.

Officials who spoke on condition of anonymity today said the investigators could not determine with complete certainty how many of the 18 Marines were killed by gunfire and missiles launched by Air Force A-10 aircraft. They said the number was as high as 10. The others were killed by enemy fire; some were hit by friendly as well as enemy fire.

The Marines who were attacked had taken control of a bridge on the northern edge of Nasiriyah -- a mission that was key to opening an attack route for the main body of Marines driving toward Baghdad.

A Marine forward air controller who was southeast of the bridge cleared two A-10 attack planes to fire on vehicles north of the bridge, not realizing they were American vehicles, according to the Times, which cited a separate Air Force report that was included in the Central Command investigation.

"The investigation took nearly a year in order to gather and fully consider all the facts and evidence to determine how Marines were killed and wounded that day," said Capt. Teresa Ovalle, spokeswoman for Camp Lejeune.

But there were still unanswered questions.

The report given to Tina Cline included testimonies of the commanding officer and Marines who were present in the battle during the fourth day of the war.

The commander said the convoy came under heavy fire.

The crew chief in the amphibious vehicle traveling behind the vehicle Cline was in said, "We were on a four-lane road on the left side going south when C208 (Cline's armored vehicle) got hit.

"I saw a white flash and the track flew a foot and a half off the ground. The side blew out. Every one in the back flew out of it."

The Times quoted the father of one of the Marines who died in the incident as saying he was told that film from the gun cameras aboard the A-10 planes no longer existed because it had accidentally been recorded over.

The Sun reported that the investigative board found that the Marine air controller did not act with "negligence or reckless disregard," but out of "what he perceived to be in the best interest of saving lives of his fellow Marines." It recommended him for unspecified administrative or disciplinary action.

Tina Cline was told that her husband died a hero and will be awarded with a Bronze Star with a "V" for valor. Although the award was approved in January, she said the Marines told her the medals would be presented to her at a later date.

She said still can't understand why she hasn't received a copy of his autopsy or the personal belongings and charred fabric found at the site.

"The word closure, it bugs me, because I don't think I'll ever have closure," she said.