At the time of Operation Phantom Fury (Al Fajr), the November 2004 combined-joint assault to retake the Iraqi city of Fallujah, Sergeant Major Peter Smith was serving as the first sergeant for Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment and, in this interview, relates his and his unit's role in this decisive urban fight. The recipient of the Silver Star for his actions in this battle, Smith - during a 72-hour period - conducted the evacuation of his company executive officer from the center of an ambush, returned to prepare for another fight, and then, after losing his company commander as well, led Alpha Company himself for another 18 hours of intense street-to-street and house-to-house fighting. In this interview, he also discusses working with the Marines - particularly Regimental Combat Team 7, to which Task Force 2-2 was assigned; problems associated with communications; his calling of danger close fire missions; and of course, his actions and responsibilities after Lieutenant Colonel Peter Newell, the 2-2 commander, made the extraordinary move of putting him in temporary in charge of Alpha Company. “In Iraq,” Smith said, “everything depends on how your soldiers execute the mission. You can have the best plan, the best resources, the best of everything, but if your soldiers don’t know their individual tasks, you aren’t going to be successful. They’re the ones going into the room, clearing the room, and they’re the ones ultimately killing the enemy – not your plan. I think that’s what we need to get back to,” the 16-year Army veteran added, “and it seems like we are getting away from that nowadays.”

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