30 years ago, thousands of tanks faced off on a desert battlefield. Today, ‘Fright Night’ still haunts these Gulf War veterans.

30年前，數(shù)千輛坦克在沙漠戰(zhàn)場上對峙。直到今天，那驚魂之夜的場景仍然縈繞在這些海灣戰(zhàn)爭老兵的心頭。

BY BILL NEWCOTT

作者：比爾·紐科特
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The most pitched tank battle in the history of warfare was fought not against the Nazis in Europe or North Africa—but just 30 years ago, in the desert of Iraq.

歷史上最激烈的坦克戰(zhàn)不是發(fā)生在歐洲對抗納粹時(shí)期，也不是發(fā)生在北非，而是在30年前的伊拉克沙漠里上演的。

Operation Desert Sabre, the four-day ground offensive of the six-week military operation known as Desert Storm, involved a fierce tank-against-tank campaign that outstripped even World War II’s savage battle of Kursk, which saw some 6,000 German and Soviet tanks battle over a grueling six-week period.

彼時(shí)，為期六周的“沙漠風(fēng)暴”軍事行動(dòng)中有一個(gè)“沙漠軍刀行動(dòng)”，那是為其四天的地面攻勢，其中的坦克對戰(zhàn)十分激烈。第二次世界大戰(zhàn)期間的庫爾斯克戰(zhàn)役十分殘酷，在那場戰(zhàn)斗中，德國和蘇聯(lián)的約6000輛坦克持續(xù)了長達(dá)六周的激戰(zhàn)。但“沙漠軍刀行動(dòng)”的坦克戰(zhàn)的激烈程度甚至超過了庫爾斯克戰(zhàn)役。

“Kursk was bigger if you consider the entire campaign,” says retired colonel and historian Gregory Fontenot, who commanded a tank battalion in what was perhaps Desert Storm’s most intense few hours—an overnight free-for-all that participants later called Fright Night.
“But no battle ever occurred—before or since Desert Storm—in which more than 3,000 tanks, plus thousands more armored vehicles, fought in the course of not quite 36 hours.”

“如果你考慮到整個(gè)戰(zhàn)役的規(guī)模，庫爾斯克戰(zhàn)役更宏大，”退休上校兼歷史學(xué)家格里高利·方特諾特回憶說，他在“沙漠風(fēng)暴”行動(dòng)最激烈的幾個(gè)小時(shí)里指揮了一個(gè)坦克營，那是一個(gè)通宵的大混戰(zhàn)，參與者后來稱之為“驚魂之夜”。“但 “沙漠風(fēng)暴”史無前例的，在那前后都從未發(fā)生過一場超過3000輛坦克，外加數(shù)千輛裝甲車輛，在不到36小時(shí)的時(shí)間里作戰(zhàn)的戰(zhàn)斗?！?/b>

In three epic encounters—dubbed 73 Easting, Medina Ridge, and Fright Night (officially known as the Battle of Norfolk)—armored behemoths from both sides relentlessly went muzzle-to-muzzle, turning the sprawling desert into history’s most concentrated tank shooting gallery.

在三場史詩般的對戰(zhàn)中，雙方裝甲巨獸無情地進(jìn)行著槍口對射，將廣袤的沙漠變成了歷史上最密集的坦克射擊場。人們稱其為“東征73號”、“麥地那嶺”和“驚魂之夜”(官方名稱為“諾?？酥畱?zhàn)”)。
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For the millions of Americans who stayed glued to their TVs in late February 1991, the news coming from Kuwait was unrelentingly triumphant. Allied troops were thoroughly trouncing the forces of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, overrunning their positions and chasing them out of Kuwait, the small, oil-rich country Hussein’s army had invaded the previous August.

1991年2月底，數(shù)百萬的美國人目不轉(zhuǎn)睛地盯著電視，從科威特傳來的消息令他們歡欣鼓舞。消息稱，伊拉克獨(dú)裁者薩達(dá)姆·侯賽因的軍隊(duì)在1990年8月入侵了科威特這個(gè)盛產(chǎn)石油的小國，不過盟軍徹底擊潰了侯賽因的部隊(duì)，占領(lǐng)了他們的陣地，并將他們趕出了科威特。

News reports showed fleets of allied tanks roaring across the desert like a stampede of buffalo, routing Iraq’s Russian-made tanks, blasting them into plumes of fire and smoke. Swarms of Iraqi soldiers were reportedly surrendering without a fight. Grim images of burned Iraqi corpses, seemed to serve as obxt lessons in the perils of challenging the might of the world’s “good guys.”

新聞報(bào)道顯示，盟軍坦克艦隊(duì)像蜂擁的水牛一樣呼嘯著穿過沙漠，擊潰了伊拉克的俄制坦克，把它們炸成了火海和濃煙。據(jù)報(bào)道，大批伊拉克士兵不戰(zhàn)而降。到處是伊拉克人被焚燒的尸體，這些可怕的畫面似乎給我們上了一課，告訴我們挑戰(zhàn)世界上“好人”的力量是多么危險(xiǎn)。

When it was all over, less than a hundred hours after the final offensive started, those of us watching TV heard the casualty reports: 292 coalition troops killed, compared to tens of thousands of Iraqi soldiers. Sitting there on our comfy couches, we looked at each other and said, “Well, that was easy.”

在最后的進(jìn)攻開始后不到100個(gè)小時(shí)的時(shí)間戰(zhàn)爭就結(jié)束后，我們這些看電視的人聽到了傷亡報(bào)告，報(bào)告稱292名聯(lián)軍士兵死亡，相比之下伊拉克士兵的死亡人數(shù)多達(dá)數(shù)萬。我們就坐在舒適的沙發(fā)上，互相打量說:“嗯，這場戰(zhàn)爭很簡單。”

Only it wasn’t easy.

只是這實(shí)際上并不容易。

From the moment Iraq invaded its smaller neighbor to the south on August 1, 1990, an array of world nations condemned the action. Over the next few months, led by the United States, a massive military force from 35 nations was assembled in adjacent Saudi Arabia. Ostensibly, the military presence was aimed at keeping Iraq from invading Saudi Arabia. But it was no secret that, if Iraq persisted in occupying Kuwait, the coalition would act to push Iraq’s forces back across their own border.

自從1990年8月1日伊拉克入侵其南部較小鄰國的那一刻起，世界各國就紛紛譴責(zé)這一行動(dòng)。在接下來的幾個(gè)月里，由美國領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的一支來自35個(gè)國家的龐大軍事力量在鄰近的沙特阿拉伯集結(jié)。表面上，該軍事力量存在的目的是防止伊拉克入侵沙特阿拉伯。但如果伊拉克堅(jiān)持占領(lǐng)科威特，聯(lián)軍將采取行動(dòng)迫使伊拉克軍隊(duì)退回自己的國界，這一目的并不是什么秘密，

“First of all, don’t ever say it was a hundred-hour war—that’s a disservice to the Air Force and other military personnel who began engaging with the Iraqis in January,” says Fontenot, sitting in the den of his home in Lansing, Kansas. Behind him hangs a painting of two U.S. tanks charging toward the viewer, “the way the Iraqis saw them.”

“首先，永遠(yuǎn)不要說這只是一場100小時(shí)的戰(zhàn)爭——這是對空軍和其他軍事人員的一種傷害，實(shí)際上他們從1月份就開始與伊拉克人接觸了，” 坐在堪薩斯州蘭辛家中的書房中的額方特諾特這樣說道。他身后掛著一幅畫，畫的是兩輛美國坦克向觀眾沖來，“這是伊拉克人看待這場戰(zhàn)爭的方式”。

On January 17, 1991, the coalition began air strikes against Iraq, bombing missile bases and other military installations. Meanwhile, ground troops in Saudi Arabia trained for desert warfare while there were isolated skirmishes between the two sides along the Saudi border.
In mid-February, coalition forces seemed to be concentrating their attention on Kuwait City, the occupied nation’s seaport capital. As warships gathered offshore, the Iraqis became convinced the expected assault would focus on the coastline.

1991年1月17日，聯(lián)軍開始空襲伊拉克，轟炸導(dǎo)彈基地和其他軍事設(shè)施。與此同時(shí)，沙特阿拉伯的地面部隊(duì)正在為沙漠戰(zhàn)爭進(jìn)行訓(xùn)練，雙方還在沙特邊境發(fā)生了小規(guī)模沖突。2月中旬，聯(lián)軍似乎將注意力集中在了被占領(lǐng)國家的海港首都科威特城。隨著軍艦在近海集結(jié)，伊拉克人開始相信預(yù)期的攻擊將集中在沿海地區(qū)。
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But while the Iraqis were preoccupied with Kuwait’s front porch, the coalition attacked through the back door: On February 24, one of the largest forces of tanks ever assembled—more than 3,000—plus thousands of armored support vehicles and infantry roared across the vast, lightly guarded Saudi-Iraqi border that stretched to the west. Commanding General Norman Schwarzkopf had devised a grand scheme he called the “l(fā)eft hook”: Coalition tanks would rush north into Iraq for a set distance, then turn abruptly to the east, pushing toward occupied Kuwait City and destroying all enemy resistance along the way.

但是，當(dāng)伊拉克人全神貫注地盯著科威特的前門時(shí)，聯(lián)軍卻從后門發(fā)動(dòng)了襲擊: 2月24日，史上規(guī)模最大的坦克部隊(duì)之一集結(jié)起來，3000多輛裝甲支援車輛和步兵呼嘯著穿過沙特-伊拉克邊界，這條邊界向西延伸，守衛(wèi)薄弱。指揮諾曼·施瓦茨科普夫?qū)④娫O(shè)計(jì)了一個(gè)他稱之為“左鉤戰(zhàn)術(shù)”的宏偉計(jì)劃，即聯(lián)軍坦克向北沖進(jìn)伊拉克一段一定距離，然后突然轉(zhuǎn)向東方，逼近被占領(lǐng)的科威特城，摧毀沿途所有抵抗的敵人。

‘Once a tanker, always a tanker’

一次的坦克手，永遠(yuǎn)的坦克手

Paul Sousa is gazing at a hulking M1A1 Abrams tank with the affection of a middle-age man reunited with his first car. The thing is 32 feet long and weighs nearly 68 tons, but to him it’s one sweet set of wheels.

保羅·蘇薩帶著中年男子與第一輛車重聚時(shí)的那種深情凝視著一輛笨重的M1A1艾布拉姆斯坦克。它有32英尺長，近68噸重，但對蘇薩來說，這是一組可愛的車輪。

“This is my beast,” he smiles. “I was on these things for 18 years. For Desert Storm, I was in one for 100 hours straight—only came out to go to the bathroom, or help fuel, or hold a machine gun while the other guys fueled.”

“這是我的野獸，”他笑著說?！拔以谶@些事情上做了18年。在“沙漠風(fēng)暴”行動(dòng)中，我在其中一輛坦克里呆了100個(gè)小時(shí)，中途只有上廁所，或者幫忙加油，或者在其他人加油的時(shí)候拿著機(jī)關(guān)槍防御的時(shí)候才出來?！?/b>

Some 1,900 of these monsters were dispatched against the Iraqis in Desert Storm. The enemy had thousands of serviceable Soviet-era tanks, but nothing to match the firepower at the fingertips of Sousa, a gunner with the 1st Cavalry Division.

在“沙漠風(fēng)暴”中，大約有1900個(gè)這樣的坦克怪物被派遣去對抗伊拉克人。敵人擁有數(shù)千輛蘇聯(lián)制造的坦克，但他們都比不上第一騎兵師的炮手蘇薩的火力。
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Modernized versions of the M1A1 are still stationed around the globe, but this particular one, sitting in a corner of the 67,000-square-foot American Heritage Museum in Stow, Massachusetts, is the only such tank on public display in the world.

現(xiàn)代化版本的M1A1坦克仍然駐扎在世界各地，但這個(gè)特殊的坦克現(xiàn)在坐落在馬薩諸塞州斯托市6.7萬平方英尺的美國文化遺產(chǎn)博物館的角落里，這是世界上唯一公開展示的這種類型的坦克。

Four soldiers manned the M1A1: a commander, a driver, a gunner, and a loader. These guys call themselves tankers. “Once a tanker, always a tanker,” they’re fond of saying. The commander sits up top, watching the surrounding terrain. The driver is out front, his head jutting from a hole just under the gun. To sit in the gunner’s seat, however, is to get a sense of having had a machine built around you. There’s not an inch of spare room; just an in-your-face array of equipment and ammunition.

M1A1上有四名士兵:一名指揮官、一名駕駛員、一名炮手和一名裝填手。這些人自稱是坦克手。他們總愛說:“一次的坦克手，永遠(yuǎn)的坦克手?！?指揮官坐在上面，觀察周圍的地形。司機(jī)在前面，他的頭得從槍下的洞里伸出來。然而，坐在炮手的座位上，你會(huì)有一種周圍有一臺機(jī)器包裹著你的感覺，周圍沒有一寸空間; 有的只是一堆你眼前的裝備和彈藥。

“For me, the whole war was spent down there in the dark, looking through a periscope,” Sousa adds. “Kind of cooped up.”

“對我來說，整個(gè)戰(zhàn)爭都是在黑暗中通過潛望鏡進(jìn)行的，” 蘇薩補(bǔ)充道?！坝悬c(diǎn)被禁錮起來了的感覺?！?/b>
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Early on the morning of February 24, coalition forces secretly stretched some 300 miles along the Saudi-Iraqi border. Iraqi military officials had some suspicions, but did not act on them.
“I’ll tell you one thing—my mother had figured it out,” says Randy Richert, who served with the 1st Infantry Division. He’d trained as a tanker but found himself driving a colonel in and around moving tank formations in an unarmed Humvee, like a dolphin skipping around a pod of whales.

2月24日清晨，聯(lián)軍沿著沙特和伊拉克邊境秘密行進(jìn)了約300英里。伊拉克軍方官員雖然有一些懷疑，但沒有采取行動(dòng)?！拔腋嬖V你一件事，我媽媽洞悉了我們的行動(dòng)，”在第一步兵師服役的蘭迪·里歇特說。蘭迪曾接受過坦克手訓(xùn)練，但在戰(zhàn)爭中只是駕駛著一輛沒有武裝的悍馬車，帶著一名上校來來回回地指揮坦克編隊(duì)，那感覺就像海豚（悍馬）在一群鯨魚（坦克）周圍蹦蹦跳跳。

“My mom kept hearing on the news about all the other divisions that were amassing near Kuwait, to the east, but nothing about us. So she told her friends, ‘I think Randy’s out there in the desert somewhere.’”

“我媽媽一直聽新聞?wù)f其他部隊(duì)在科威特以東集結(jié)，但沒有聽到關(guān)于我們編隊(duì)的消息。所以她告訴她的朋友們，‘我覺得蘭迪在沙漠里的某個(gè)地方?！?/b>

Prior to Desert Storm, many of the Army’s tankers had spent the better part of a decade on M1A1s in Europe—training for the possibility of a Soviet invasion across the Iron Curtain.

在“沙漠風(fēng)暴”之前，為了應(yīng)對蘇聯(lián)越過鐵幕入侵的可能性，許多陸軍的坦克手都在歐洲花了近十年的時(shí)間在M1A1里訓(xùn)練，。

“It was Cold War time,” recalls Paul Beaulieu, a gunner. “We were always on alx; always waiting for that Soviet invasion. I never dreamed I’d end up using that training somewhere in the desert, but I was ready.”

“在冷戰(zhàn)時(shí)期，”槍手保羅·博利厄回憶道?！拔覀儠r(shí)刻保持警惕;一直在等著蘇聯(lián)的入侵。但是我做夢也沒想到自己的這種訓(xùn)練成果最終會(huì)在沙漠的某個(gè)地方派上用場，但我最終也準(zhǔn)備好了?！?/b>

Walking around the American Heritage Museum’s M1A1, Beaulieu notes that the tank’s advanced suspension system gave it a surprisingly smooth ride, even on the roughest desert terrain. Pointing to a nearby 1960s vintage Sheridan M551 tank, which also saw service in Desert Storm, he adds, “Compared to riding in that tank over there, this is like a Cadillac.” Ironically, the Sheridan was actually built by Cadillac.

站在美國遺產(chǎn)博物館的M1A1旁邊，博利厄提到，坦克的先進(jìn)懸掛系統(tǒng)可以讓坦克在最粗糙的沙漠地形上也能實(shí)現(xiàn)平穩(wěn)行駛。他指著附近一輛上世紀(jì)60年代的老式謝里丹M551坦克補(bǔ)充說:“和坐在那邊的坦克比起來，這就像一輛凱迪拉克?！爸S刺的是，謝里丹實(shí)際上是凱迪拉克建造的。
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‘It was raining mud’

泥雨紛飛

That first morning, the tanks, accompanied by infantry and other armored vehicles, plowed through Iraqi defenses—many of which had been nearly destroyed by earlier air attacks—as they made steady progress north.

第一天早上，坦克在步兵和其他裝甲車輛的陪同下穿過了伊拉克的防御工事，由于途中的許多防御工事幾乎被早些時(shí)候的空襲摧毀，所以部隊(duì)一路穩(wěn)步向北推進(jìn)。

Utterly unprepared, tens of thousands of Iraqi infantry—most of whom were teens and young men pressed into service by Saddam—fought fiercely but were severely outgunned. Many surrendered when the tanks arrived in their camps. These were not Iraq’s most skilled fighters, however. They were mere cannon fodder set up in broad perimeters in front of Iraq’s much-feared Republican Guard.

伊拉克步兵中大部分是被薩達(dá)姆強(qiáng)迫服役的青少年和年輕人，所以成千上萬的伊拉克步兵完全沒有做好準(zhǔn)備。雖然他們的反抗也十分激烈，但奈何武器嚴(yán)重落后。最后，當(dāng)聯(lián)軍坦克到達(dá)他們的營地時(shí)，許多人直接投降了。然而，他們并不是伊拉克最熟練的戰(zhàn)士。他們只不過是在伊拉克令人畏懼的共和國衛(wèi)隊(duì)前設(shè)置的寬范圍內(nèi)的炮灰而已。

At home in the U.S., viewers saw stock film footage of M1A1 tanks speeding across a dry, flat desert under brilliantly sunny skies. But those were training films. The actual weather in Iraq was dreadful: Rain pounded the desert for most of the offensive. Even worse, it was a sticky, oily rain—caused by precipitation mixing with the billowing smoke from Kuwait’s oil fields, which the Iraqis had set afire.

在美國國內(nèi)，觀眾們看到了膠片上的一些片段，影片里，在晴朗的天空下，M1A1坦克在干燥平坦的沙漠上飛馳。但那是只是訓(xùn)練影片。實(shí)際上，伊拉克的真實(shí)天氣是可怕的，在進(jìn)攻的大部分時(shí)間里，沙漠中雨水肆虐。更糟糕的是，因?yàn)橐晾巳它c(diǎn)燃了科威特油田，油田冒出的滾滾濃煙和雨水混合，這就讓當(dāng)時(shí)的雨水非常粘稠的且含油量高。

The invasion’s swift success surprised even Schwarzkopf, who ordered his troops to push on well ahead of schedule. The decision increased the coalition’s advantage, but took a toll on the already-fatigued troops.

聯(lián)軍入侵迅速取得了成功，這個(gè)結(jié)果甚至讓施瓦茨科普夫也感到驚訝，他命令他的部隊(duì)提前推進(jìn)。這一決定增加了聯(lián)軍的優(yōu)勢，但對已經(jīng)疲憊不堪的部隊(duì)也造成了一定損失。

“Sleep just didn’t happen,” says Richert. “The minute you stopped, you’d fall asleep. Maybe you’d get a 20-minute nap, and that would be it for the next eight hours.”

“根本就沒有睡覺的機(jī)會(huì)，”里歇特說?！澳阋煌Ｏ聛?，就會(huì)睡著。也許你會(huì)小睡20分鐘，但接下來的8個(gè)小時(shí)就沒機(jī)會(huì)再睡了?！?/b>

There were a number of tank-to-tank skirmishes in the first two days of the operation, but the armored war began in earnest on February 26 when the U.S. 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment and other units encountered Republican Guard tanks after they had made the eastward turn toward Kuwait. In one notable face-off, A Troop—led by future U.S. National Security Advisor Capt. H.R. McMaster—took a position above a dried-up river bed, and for four hours fought off wave after wave of Iraqi tanks.

在行動(dòng)的頭兩天有一些坦克對坦克的小沖突，但裝甲戰(zhàn)爭在美國第二裝甲騎兵團(tuán)和其他單位在向東轉(zhuǎn)向科威特后遇到了共和國衛(wèi)隊(duì)的坦克后才正式開始，時(shí)間是2月26日。在一次引人注目的對峙中，一支由后來的美國國家安全顧問麥克馬斯特上尉率領(lǐng)的部隊(duì)在干涸的河床上駕好裝備，在長達(dá)四個(gè)小時(shí)的戰(zhàn)斗中擊退了一波又一波的伊拉克坦克。

Hours later, just a few miles away, the 1st Infantry Division and the 3rd Brigade of the 2nd Armored Division (also known as Hell on Wheels) got into a middle-of-the-night battle with more Republican Guard tanks—Fontenot’s Fright Night.

幾個(gè)小時(shí)后，就在幾英里之外的地方，第一步兵師和第二裝甲師(也被稱為地獄之輪)的第三旅與更多的共和國衛(wèi)隊(duì)坦克展開了午夜戰(zhàn)斗，這就是著名的“方特諾特的恐怖之夜”。

In the dark, in the rain, in the smoke, conditions could hardly have been worse. Tanks fired on each other without being certain which side they were on. Iraqi soldiers physically swarmed the coalition tanks, attempting to find holes through which they could aim their machine guns. The tankers responded by sealing their hatches while their comrades in nearby tanks literally peppered them with machine gun fire, killing the hangers-on.

在煙霧繚繞的黑暗的雨夜中，情況糟糕透了。坦克在不確定自己在哪一邊的情況下互相開火。伊拉克士兵聚集在聯(lián)軍坦克上，試圖找到可以瞄準(zhǔn)機(jī)槍的射擊孔。 作為回應(yīng)，坦克封閉了艙口，而附近坦克里的戰(zhàn)友用機(jī)槍向聚集的伊拉克士兵掃射，解決了那些人。

The sky was illuminated with tracers. As tanks passed low hills or depressions, Iraqi fighters jumped from hiding, aiming rocket-powered grenade launchers, trying to take the tanks out from behind. Only quick action from the tank’s machine gunners prevented disaster.

后來，天空被曳光彈照亮了。當(dāng)坦克駛過低矮的山丘或洼地時(shí)，伊拉克士兵會(huì)從藏身之處跳起來，瞄準(zhǔn)火箭動(dòng)力榴彈發(fā)射器，試圖從后面把坦克干掉。只有快速行動(dòng)的坦克機(jī)槍手才避免了災(zāi)難的發(fā)生。

“Sometimes,” says Fontenot, “it would just be lines of tanks firing away at each other. It was 360-degree battle.”

“有時(shí)候，”方特諾特說，“那只是一排坦克相互射擊。這是一場360度的戰(zhàn)斗?！?/b>

Inevitably, in the confusion and the darkness, fatal accidents happened. In his book, The First Infantry Division and the U.S. Army Transformed: Road to Victory in Desert Storm, Fontenot relates the sickening moment when an errant armor-piercing round from an M1A1 destroyed a U.S. Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle, sending glitter-like sparkles skyward.

在混亂和黑暗中，不可避免地發(fā)生了一些致命的事故。在他的《第一步兵師與美國陸軍的轉(zhuǎn)變:沙漠風(fēng)暴中的勝利之路》一書中，方特諾特就描述了一個(gè)令人惡心的時(shí)刻:一架M1A1的穿甲彈擊中了一輛美國布拉德利步兵車，把閃閃發(fā)光的火花射向了天空。
原創(chuàng)翻譯：龍騰網(wǎng) http://nxnpts.cn 轉(zhuǎn)載請注明出處


Fontenot specifically ordered his men not to shoot until they were absolutely certain it was an enemy in their sights. Still, he is haunted by what he calls the “fratricide” of that chaotic night. A combination of friendly and enemy fired killed six Americans and wounded 32.

方特諾特特別命令他的手下在完全確定敵人已經(jīng)進(jìn)入視線之前不要開槍。盡管如此，在那個(gè)混亂的夜晚，他仍然被所謂的“兄弟間的自相殘殺”所困擾。友軍和敵軍聯(lián)合開火，打死了6名美國人，打傷32人。

“There were so many factors,” he says. “It was raining mud, for crying out loud. We had clouds and smoke that played tricks with visibility. Someone said visibility that night was like looking into a closet with sunglasses on.”

“有很多因素造成了這個(gè)后果，”他說。“當(dāng)時(shí)下著泥巴雨。我們的云層和煙霧對能見度造成了影響。有人說，那天晚上的能見度就像戴著墨鏡往壁櫥里看一樣?！?/b>

Fatigue also played a role, Fontenot says. “The guys saw things that they expected to see, but they weren’t really there. If you see combat vehicles coming toward you, you’re going to do something, and it might not be the right thing.”

方特諾特說，疲勞也是原因之一?！斑@些家伙看到了他們期望看到的東西，但他們并沒有真正做到。如果你看到戰(zhàn)斗車輛朝你駛來，你就會(huì)采取行動(dòng)，而這可能不是正確的做法?！?/b>

After Fright Night, there was one major tank battle left: a 40-minute slugfest at a place called Medina Ridge, involving some 3,000 vehicles, including 348 M1A1 tanks. It was the last stand for Iraq’s Republican Guard, and they put up their best fight of the short war. Still, the M1A1’s gun range was so superior to the Iraqis’ they could fire almost with impunity. Attack helicopters and A-10 anti-tank planes flew in to help mop up.

恐怖之夜過后，還剩下一場主要的坦克大戰(zhàn)，即在麥地那嶺進(jìn)行的一場40分鐘的激戰(zhàn)，該戰(zhàn)役涉及約3000輛車輛，其中包括348輛M1A1坦克。這是伊拉克共和國衛(wèi)隊(duì)的最后一站，他們在短暫的戰(zhàn)爭中打出了最好的一仗。盡管如此，M1A1的射程還是比伊拉克人優(yōu)越，他們幾乎可以不受敵軍火力影響地開火。聯(lián)軍還利用攻擊直升機(jī)和A-10反坦克飛機(jī)飛過來幫忙掃尾。

The victory at Medina Ridge was quick, decisive—and, for many of the Americans, traumatizing.

麥地那嶺戰(zhàn)役的勝利是迅速而果斷的，但對許多美國人來說，這是一次精神創(chuàng)傷。

“I don’t think my wife needs to know what took place out here,” one tanker told the New York Times. “I do not want her to know that side of me.” From breach to cease-fire, the battles of Desert Storm lasted a bit under a hundred hours. Between 25,000 and 50,000 Iraqi soldiers were killed and 80,000 captured. Of the 219 U.S. soldiers who died, 154 perished in battle, too many of them in friendly fire.

“我認(rèn)為我的妻子不需要知道這里發(fā)生了什么，”一名坦克手告訴《紐約時(shí)報(bào)》?！拔也幌胱屗牢业哪且幻妗！?從開始進(jìn)攻到?；?，“沙漠風(fēng)暴”的戰(zhàn)斗持續(xù)了不到100個(gè)小時(shí)。有2.5萬到5萬名伊拉克士兵被殺，8萬人被俘。在陣亡的219名美軍士兵中，有154人死于戰(zhàn)斗，其中很多則人死于友軍炮火。

About 3,300 Iraqi tanks were destroyed in desert battles and by air attack. The coalition lost 31.

大約3300輛伊拉克坦克在沙漠戰(zhàn)斗和空襲中被摧毀。聯(lián)軍損失了31輛。

A somber place

昏暗的地方

The M1A1 at the American Heritage Museum is shiny and like new. It’s a Monday, the museum is closed, and the museum’s Hunter Chaney asks if I’d like to sit inside. The answer, of course, is yes.

美國文化博物館里的M1A1閃閃發(fā)光，就像新的一樣。那是一個(gè)周一，我去博物館但是關(guān)門了，博物館的亨特·切尼問我想不想進(jìn)去坐坐。答案當(dāng)然是肯定的。

I need a step ladder to mount the tank’s side—a young soldier would have clambered up there like a mountain goat. I slide into the tank’s dark interior, flip down the gunner’s spring-loaded seat, and get into position.

我用一個(gè)梯子爬上了坦克的一側(cè)，一個(gè)年輕的士兵會(huì)像一只山羊一樣爬上去。我滑進(jìn)坦克黑漆漆的內(nèi)部，掀翻炮手的彈簧座椅，并就位。

The last time I saw one of these things in person was in the months after Desert Storm, during a gala, triumphant parade on the streets of Washington, D.C.

我上一次親眼看到這些東西是在沙漠風(fēng)暴之后的幾個(gè)月，那會(huì)兒華盛頓特區(qū)街頭舉行了一個(gè)慶祝游行。

But there’s no sense of triumph in here. It’s a somber place, made all the more subdued by the fact that a man died in the seat next to mine. After the Gulf War ended, this particular M1A1 remained in the Middle East, where it was put into service during the Iraq War. On August 3, 2006, while patrolling outside of Fallujah, the tank was struck by an improvised explosive device (IED). A hunk of shrapnel tore into the neck of the commander, a young father named George Ulloa.

但在博物館這里完全沒有勝利的感覺。這是一個(gè)陰郁的地方，一個(gè)男人死在了我旁邊的座位上，這讓我更加感到壓抑。海灣戰(zhàn)爭結(jié)束后，這架M1A1一直留在中東，并在伊拉克戰(zhàn)爭期間投入使用過。2006年8月3日，在費(fèi)盧杰城外巡邏時(shí)，這輛坦克被一個(gè)簡易爆炸裝置(IED)擊中。一大塊彈片擊中了一位名叫喬治·烏略亞的年輕父親的脖子。

In a video tribute playing on a loop near the tank, Ulloa’s tearful wife talks about his love for their three children, his love for his country.

在坦克旁邊循環(huán)播放的致敬視頻中，烏略亞含淚的妻子談到了他對他們?nèi)齻€(gè)孩子的愛，以及他對國家的愛。

Wars can be swift; wars can seem to go on forever. And depending on your perspective, even a hundred-hour war can feel like an eternity.

戰(zhàn)爭可以是迅速的，但是戰(zhàn)爭似乎會(huì)永遠(yuǎn)持續(xù)下去。根據(jù)不同的人的看法，即使是100個(gè)小時(shí)的戰(zhàn)爭也會(huì)讓人感覺像永恒。