Operation: PROMETHEUS

Summary
Operation: PROMETHEUS was a suicide mission ordered by the Office of Naval Intelligence. The mission took place on K7-49, a volcanic asteroid which served as a Covenant shipyard. The mission was to destroy the Covenant plasma reactors, disabling the shipyard and halting Covenant assaults. The success of the mission would save countless lives.

Alpha Company succeeded, but at a great cost: all the participating Spartan-IIIs died in the battle.

July 27, 2537:

 * 300 Spartan-IIIs of Alpha Company land on K7-49 at 0700 hours.

July 28, 2537:

 * The Spartan-IIIs have disabled 7 of the reactors on the surface.


 * The Covenant respond with the first heavy wave of troops, containing legions of Jackals.

July 31, 2537:

 * The Spartan-IIIs have disabled 20 of the 30 reactors.


 * The Covenant responds with a second heavy wave of troops, including numerous Elites and Banshees.

August 2, 2537:

 * 27 of the 30 reactors have been disabled. The Spartan-IIIs have fulfilled their mission.


 * A third heavy wave of Covenant troops arrives, containing Elites and Hunters.


 * The Spartan-IIIs are cut off from their Calypso-class Exfiltration Craft. The remaining Spartans are eventually overrun and killed.

Historical Significance
The operation is an obvious allusion to the Battle of Thermopylae. 300 Spartans were present at both battles, both were suicide missions, both were fought in order to slow the enemy down enough for the respective sides to prepare and survive longer, and both resulted the deaths of all Spartan combatants.

Trivia

 * Not all members of Alpha Company were killed in the battle. Carter-A259, Emile-A239, and Jun-A266 served with Noble Team as of August 2552.

Related Pages

 * Spartan-Shane
 * Spartan-Robert
 * Spartan-Jane