In March 2003, U.S. and coalition ground forces crossed into Iraq and began a rapid advance north toward Baghdad.
OIF: The Drive to Baghdad tells the story of the opening phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry Division as it moved from Kuwait through southern Iraq toward Baghdad.
Produced by 29 Pixel Studios as part of our work supporting Army University Press, the documentary combines historical footage and photographs, virtual terrain, animated maps, U.S. Army doctrine, and one-on-one interviews with veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
▶️ Watch OIF: The Drive to Baghdad:
https://youtu.be/7gGLusbyOfM
Operation Iraqi Freedom Begins
On March 20, 2003, U.S. ground forces began crossing the Iraq-Kuwait border.
For the 3rd Infantry Division, one of the first challenges was breaching the massive border berm. Engineers opened lanes through the obstacle while artillery and rocket fires targeted Iraqi positions and helped conceal the breach.
Once the lanes were open, elements of the division conducted a forward passage of lines and began moving toward their first objectives near Tallil Air Base and Nasiriyah.
The drive to Baghdad was underway.
Tallil Air Base and the Euphrates
Two important early objectives were Tallil Air Base—Objective FIREBIRD—and the Highway 1 bridge across the Euphrates River near Nasiriyah—Objective CLAY.
Securing Tallil would allow coalition forces to establish logistics and aviation support farther inside Iraq. Securing the bridge would provide an important route for the continued advance north.
The 3rd Infantry Division used maneuver forces, artillery, attack aviation, engineers, and other capabilities to seize these objectives and establish positions around Nasiriyah. Tallil soon became a functioning base supporting continued operations.
But the strategy of maintaining speed created another problem.
The Army planned to bypass many urban areas rather than become involved in prolonged street battles.
Those cities wouldn’t necessarily remain out of the fight.
Bypassing the Cities
As the 3rd Infantry Division pushed north, its lines of communication stretched hundreds of kilometers back toward Kuwait.
Those routes were essential.
Fuel, ammunition, food, replacement parts, maintenance assets, and other supplies all had to keep moving forward while the combat formations continued toward Baghdad.
Enemy forces operating from bypassed cities could threaten those increasingly long supply lines.
That became clear as 3rd Squadron, 7th Cavalry approached Samawah.
Soldiers expecting limited resistance instead encountered determined fighting from paramilitary forces. The battle demonstrated that bypassing a city did not necessarily remove the threat it posed to the units moving behind the main advance.
The Challenge of Keeping an Army Moving
The speed of the offensive created enormous sustainment challenges.
Armored and mechanized forces consume huge quantities of fuel and require constant maintenance. Replacement parts needed to travel from Kuwait across an increasingly long and potentially dangerous logistics network.
At Objective RAMS near Najaf, what had been intended as an opportunity to rest, repair vehicles, and prepare for the next phase instead developed into a prolonged fight with Iraqi paramilitary forces.
The experience underscores one of the central themes of the film:
Moving quickly toward Baghdad meant keeping the entire force moving—not just the tanks at the front.
Samawah and Najaf
Resistance around cities such as Samawah and Najaf forced commanders to dedicate additional forces to protecting the routes behind the 3rd Infantry Division.
Elements of the 82nd Airborne Division were committed around Samawah, while the 101st Airborne Division operated around Najaf.
These operations helped contain enemy forces and protect the lines of communication, allowing the 3rd Infantry Division to continue north toward the Karbala Gap.
The Karbala Gap
By the end of March, Baghdad was getting closer.
But one major geographic obstacle remained: the Karbala Gap.
The 3rd Infantry Division continued its advance while other coalition forces attacked or contained enemy positions elsewhere. As units moved through and around Karbala, they encountered difficult terrain and continued resistance.
Once through the gap, the lead elements of the division began moving toward Objective PEACH, a bridge over the Euphrates River.
By April 2, V Corps had advanced more than 300 kilometers into Iraq in 11 days.
Beyond Objective PEACH was Highway 8.
And beyond Highway 8 was Baghdad.
The Story Continues
OIF: The Drive to Baghdad ends with coalition forces approaching the Iraqi capital.
The next film picks up almost exactly where this story ends.
OIF: The Fight for Baghdad follows the battle for Objective PEACH, the seizure of objectives surrounding Baghdad, the fight for Saddam International Airport, and the eventual push into the city.
▶️ Watch OIF: The Fight for Baghdad:
https://youtu.be/7kxNQPKbeZU
Together, the two documentaries tell the story of the 3rd Infantry Division’s advance from the Iraq-Kuwait border to downtown Baghdad during the opening phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Creating OIF: The Drive to Baghdad
29 Pixel Studios produced OIF: The Drive to Baghdad as part of our work supporting Army University Press.
Our relationship with Army University Press began in 2018, and since then our team has helped create more than 50 films exploring military history, leadership, doctrine, and the experiences of U.S. soldiers.
This documentary brought together veteran interviews, archival footage and photography, animated maps, virtual terrain, motion graphics, military doctrine, and documentary storytelling to help explain a complex ground campaign.
We’re proud to make it available again through the 29 Pixel Studios YouTube channel.
▶️ WATCH THE FILM
OIF: The Drive to Baghdad
https://youtu.be/7gGLusbyOfM
29 Pixel Studios is an independent production company. This website and our YouTube channel are not official U.S. Army or Department of War properties.
The appearance of U.S. Department of War (DoW) visual information does not imply or constitute DoW endorsement.
