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Wild Blue Yonder 1: 50 Years of Gs & Jets
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Wild Blue Yonder - Episode 1 - 50 Years of Gs and Jets (Digital Ranch) (Spectrum Holobyte)(1-107-40-101)(1994).iso
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00109_Field_109.txt
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1994-08-29
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2KB
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Hero of Desert Storm
On January 17, 1991, F-117s were in the forefront of the initial
assault in Operation Desert Storm. Forty-five F-117As had been
deployed from Tonopah, Nevada to Khamis Mushait Air Base in Saudi
Arabia in preparation for this confrontation. (The Saudi base
was nicknamed "Tonopah East" because of its similar terrain.)
The first cruise missiles slammed into Iraqi targets at 2:37 a.m.
(local time). At 3:00 a.m., F-117As began the first manned
fixed-wing aircraft attacks, promptly destroying 34 targets
associated with the Iraq air defense system.
Incredible post-strike photos showed the precision of the
F-117As' laser-guided bombs as they struck the central telephone
exchange and other vital elements of Saddam Hussein's command and
control network. In the first day of the war, the F-117s
comprised 2.5% of the Coalition's air force, but they destroyed
31% of the targets. After taking out the Iraqi communications
system, the F-117s turned to targets such as bridges, nuclear
facilities, and airfields. The F-117 attack on Iraq's Tupolev
Tu-16 bombers reportedly neutralized Saddam's ability to launch
an airborne chemical warfare attack.
The Stealth fighter-bomber's impact during the war was
tremendous. These aircraft dropped more than 2000 laser-guided
weapons (mostly GBU-10s and GBU-15s). Because the F-117s were
based 900 miles from their targets in Baghdad, the pilots were
forced to fly grueling 5 1/2 hour missions and remain in Iraqi
airspace for 30 minutes at a time. Despite their prominence in
the Coalition's attacks -- F-117s flew 1,271 missions (over 7000
combat hours) during Operation Desert Storm -- not one Stealth
fighter-bomber was lost.