Why were the Ft. Irwin soilders in LA?

[Stuv]

I think one of the most interesting things in the latest chapter waste recon team from Irwin. Why were they in LA? What was the purpose of the "map"? I have a theory.
I believe the maps are being gathered to aid Kimmet in planning an attack on LA. He needs intelligence on infrastructure and zombie movement and concentrations. I think he has enough intel to identify LA as the source of the infection.(at least on the west coast) I think he has the means and intention to pinpoint the source and destroy it, allowing him to re-claim whatever part of the city remains. I know there has been some discussion about a nuke. I don't think that is the weapon he has access to however I do believe it is something he feels will get the job done. In addition, I think he is willing to accept a high level of civilian casualties to accomplish this. I could see this leading to conflict with Michael and making the story at Irwin quite interesting. This could also complicate the rescue Lizzy/Mallers at the colony storyline.

[GeneTwo]

I'm not too sure about retaking LA. Why scout locations around the south of LA. The Airport would be a better place to scout if you wanted to take back LA. I mean, you would need a massive amount of troops and munitions and the best place to drop that off would be the airport.

I think its more likely they were scouting zombie ground zero.

[Cabbage Patch]

Funny thing, I once planned an invasion of LA starting from Fort Irwin. It was during the Rodney King riots. I was stationed at Fort Irwin, running an NTC mission planning section. We had two fully armed armored brigades the base at the time (the OPFOR and a training unit), and I was sure we'd get called.

It turns out that the key terrain isn't where you think it would be. Step one is to secure the Cajon Pass and routes through San Bernardino. The most critical military objective is the National Guard base in Los Alamitos, in Orange County, since that's the only place rioters could acquire heavy weapons. The next priority is to secure the passes to the San Fernando and San Gabriel Vallies, and on the coast headed to Ventura, and to position units on the major freeways. The LA Basin is remarkably flat, and that makes the freeways the key terrain. They can be used to divide the area into sectors, they channelize movement between sectors, and armored vehicles can use them to dominate the neighborhoods on either side. That allows you to isolate the trouble spots and support pacification efforts.

Needless to say, we never launched that particular operation. In fact I got pretty roundly reemed out for starting the process since there was never any plan to use the regular military to intervene in the riots.

I would never propose a plan like this in a We're Alive scenario. The Fort Irwin we've seen doesn't have enough manpower to make a full scale invasion work, and Los Angeles, in and of itself, isn't an important enough objective to justify the effort. All of which is a long-winded way of saying I don't think the Army recon was a precursor to re-taking LA. They're looking for something, or someone.

[VEE]

Disneyland?

Actually, as a result of this post I was doing some LA research and came across Catalina Island, which I've never heard of.

"This island may be only 22 miles across the sea, but it’s a world away from the urban velocity of L.A. Ferries dock in Mediterranean-flavoured Avalon, the island’s commercial hub. Most of the interior is protected nature preserve that may only be explored on foot or bicycle (permit required), or by taking an organized tour. These are excellent ways to learn about the island’s colourful history as a destination for sea otter poachers, smugglers, Union soldiers, mining speculators, and finally, tourists."





Sorry to be off topic, but this looks like a potentially good place to live post Z-Day.

Back on topic. I assume Michael must have some authority at FT Irwin, or be near the top end of the chain of command at least and is quite possibly directing intelligence gathering operations, why? I wonder if FT Irwin are way ahead of us intel wise and are there for the little ones/behemoths. Quite a lot of time has passed and they won't have been just sitting on their hands.

[7oddisdead]

actually, somebody find the direct episode/timestamp for me...but when michael/pegs/kelly were at the beach house and subsequently in the ocean afterwards..catalina was mentioned

chapter 16..i dont remember which part or when..its past this old mans bedtime

[Cabbage Patch]

Actually, as a result of this post I was doing some LA research and came across Catalina Island, which I've never heard of.

...Sorry to be off topic, but this looks like a potentially good place to live post Z-Day.

Nice thought, but KC was a step ahead of us. Remember Chapter 16, when Michael and Pegs were on the Yacht and encountered the zombies swimming in the water. They refer a couple of times to "The Island" as the place the zombies are swimming from. That island is almost certainly Catalina. The giveaway is when Michael mentions the bison herd; there's a herd of bison on Catalina. The upshot is that Catalina is over run and the surviving zombies have stripped it bare to the point that they're starving and willing to swim to the mainland for a meal.

[reaper239]

Funny thing, I once planned an invasion of LA starting from Fort Irwin. It was during the Rodney King riots. I was stationed at Fort Irwin, running an NTC mission planning section. We had two fully armed armored brigades the base at the time (the OPFOR and a training unit), and I was sure we'd get called.

It turns out that the key terrain isn't where you think it would be. Step one is to secure the Cajon Pass and routes through San Bernardino. The most critical military objective is the National Guard base in Los Alamitos, in Orange County, since that's the only place rioters could acquire heavy weapons. The next priority is to secure the passes to the San Fernando and San Gabriel Vallies, and on the coast headed to Ventura, and to position units on the major freeways. The LA Basin is remarkably flat, and that makes the freeways the key terrain. They can be used to divide the area into sectors, they channelize movement between sectors, and armored vehicles can use them to dominate the neighborhoods on either side. That allows you to isolate the trouble spots and support pacification efforts.

Needless to say, we never launched that particular operation. In fact I got pretty roundly reemed out for starting the process since there was never any plan to use the regular military to intervene in the riots.

I would never propose a plan like this in a We're Alive scenario. The Fort Irwin we've seen doesn't have enough manpower to make a full scale invasion work, and Los Angeles, in and of itself, isn't an important enough objective to justify the effort. All of which is a long-winded way of saying I don't think the Army recon was a precursor to re-taking LA. They're looking for something, or someone.

that's a great plan for riots, but what happens when the whole city is hostile? i think the best example to use for this is fallujah. all civillians were allowed to leave, so only hostiles were in the city itself, then they moved through and cleared it. also, zed don't use guns, so the armory would only be a priority for resupply.

[VEE]

Nice thought, but KC was a step ahead of us. Remember Chapter 16, when Michael and Pegs were on the Yacht and encountered the zombies swimming in the water. They refer a couple of times to "The Island" as the place the zombies are swimming from. That island is almost certainly Catalina. The giveaway is when Michael mentions the bison herd; there's a herd of bison on Catalina. The upshot is that Catalina is over run and the surviving zombies have stripped it bare to the point that they're starving and willing to swim to the mainland for a meal.

Yup, which means it's now empty of Zombies

lets go there!

[Stuv]

Great points all. I think perhaps I was bit unclear in my post. I will try to clarify. I don't think an all out assault is in the works. I think Kimmet will target the source (aka ground zero) and then attempt to reclaim whatever parts of the city are still habitable. I know many of you have military experience and are far more qualified to speak to tactics, viable targets etc. I was looking at it more from a storytelling perspective and this seemed like an interesting way to bring all the scattered groups together.

[Litmaster]

The soldier Fowler (who was killed) asks at 14:33 "What was that last (route? road?) again?" and the reply was "Santa Fe".

Santa Fe Avenue runs through Long Beach at a N-S axis, roughly parallel and just west of the 710 freeway. It seems likely that what they were doing was checking which roads were still passable going into and out of LA. I doubt this would be to pave the way for a full-scale invasion, but it could be to scout out possible land-routes for a future excursion to various resource-targets in the LA area.