The Journey of Flight.pdf - Valkyrie Cadet

Iraq Iraq Iraq Iraq Iraq Counterattacks
Counterattacks
Counterattacks
Counterattacks
Counterattacks
On January 29th, Iraq launched an attack into Saudi Arabia. The battle was so important to Saddam
Hussein, he personally visited his troops in Basra 2 days before the attack. After going over the plan
with his field commanders, Hussein headed back to Baghdad. On the way back, his caravan was
spotted by two Air Force F-16s and they attacked. Only later did U.S. Intelligence find out that Hussein
was in that convoy and that he made it through unharmed.
One thing that the Central Intelligence Agency did know prior to the event was that a battle was
brewing. There was a possibility of an Iraqi attack into Saudi Arabia. US Marines manning the border
posts along the border were notified to stay alert. Their plan was to sound the alarm and retreat back to
where larger coalition forces were stationed, some 35 miles to the rear.
The Iraqi plan was a good one if it had worked. The idea was an old trick played by the North
Vietnamese. The Iraqi’s wanted to inflict casualties. They thought this would erode American support
at home. Americans would not tolerate casualties, and they would eventually go home like they did in
Vietnam.
The Iraqi attack plan called for a
two-pronged strike into Saudi Arabia.
The first would go through the Kuwait
Wafra Forest and the other would be
through the small Saudi Arabian border
town of Khafji, which had been
evacuated earlier. Their objective was
twofold. First, take the port at Mishab
that the US Marines were using.
Second, draw an American
counterattack. The Iraqi’s would then
withdraw into Kuwait and lure the
Americans into the defenses they had
setup in Kuwait. They could then fight
for a stalemate and inflict as many
casualties as possible.
The attack needed surprise and the Iraqi’s had to move at night to avoid being seen by coalition
The State of the Art C-17 jet transport now serves the USAF around
the world. (Boeing)
aircraft. Little did they know that the Americans could see during the day and the night. Not only did
the Marines spot them 3 miles out, US Air Force E-8 JSTARS aircraft spotted the Iraqi tanks moving
toward the border. The E-8 JSTARS platform was an experimental aircraft designed to use a large radar
inside the aircraft to spot large enemy ground movements. There were only two and they both worked
well.
The Iraqis were spotted. The Marines retreated, but some of them got caught up in the outskirts of
Khafji. They hid on top of a building and called in air strikes when possible. The Iraqis plodded
forward, but their reserves were cut off by coalition air strikes once the main movement was spotted.
They too were attacked by A-10s, B-52s, F/A-18s from the USS Saratoga, and Special Operations AC-
130H Gunships. The Gunships are converted C-130 cargo aircraft armed with 20mm guns, 40mm guns
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