This Day in History – November 11, 2002

On Veterans Day 2002, Task Force 2-7 Infantry was not attending parades or ceremonies. We were deep in the Mojave Desert at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, California—locked in simulated combat against the Army’s most cunning adversary, the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. The terrain was unforgiving, the missions brutal. We attacked trench networks modeled after Iraqi defenses, cleared bunkers under simulated chemical conditions, and learned the hard way that brute force alone wouldn’t win the next war. Over 75% of our battalion task force was “destroyed” in the first assault. We regrouped, adapted, and attacked again. That day, we weren’t just honoring veterans—it felt like we were becoming them. What we learned in the Box would save lives just months later, when we crossed into Iraq for real.