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RAF get the silent killer
RAF Tornados were ready last night to strike a crucial blow to Saddam Hussein â by unleashing deadly new Storm Shadow missiles. The 15 GR4 bombers will spearhead the blitz on Iraqâs vital command bunkers alongside US and Australian counterparts. And they are banking on a delivery of the 1,300kg stealth cruise bombs in time for the opening bombardment. The Storm Shadows are so new they have never been used in battle. But military top brass believe the weapon will help crush Saddamâs command structure within days. The missiles have a range of 180 miles and it will mean RAF pilots will be able to avoid the dangerous suicidal missions of the first Gulf War where they flew directly over enemy targets. The RAF squadron was expected to turn up in Kuwait or Turkey, but slipped unannounced into the Gulf state of Qatar a fortnight ago. The pilots are already carrying out round-the-clock training missions with their allied colleagues from the al Udeid air base outside Doha. US military chiefs have given them the go-ahead to form a key part in the opening hours of military strikes. Storm Shadow is the very latest âsmartâ weapon. It is accurate to within a few feet. Target co-ordinates are programmed into its computer before the mission and it is launched from the air. It hugs the groundâs contours so it remains invisible to radar screens â and will be used to attack Saddamâs control and communications bunkers. MoD officials ordered makers Matra BAe to speed up production of the weapon at the end of last year in the hope it would be ready to be used against Saddam. RAF engineers are ready to work in sweltering temperatures of 60 degrees to keep their Tornados in the air. But the heat is so intense they can only do 15-minute shifts before spending 45 minutes in air-conditioned rooms. Even their tools have to be kept in buckets full of iced water because they become too hot to touch. As the RAF made their final preparations, part of the Royal Navy task force in the Gulf began to sail north to Iraq. After five days at anchor, 14 vessels ordered their force protection teams to âclose upâ â which means manning on-deck machine guns day and night. The men of 40 Royal Marine Commando aboard the Navy Task Force ships have been at sea for eight weeks and are eager to go into action. The unit specialises in devastatingly fast coastline assaults and knows it is likely to form the spearhead of any coalition invasion. That means the next land the troops step on will almost certainly be Iraq. Marine Grant Slaney, 20, on board HMS Ocean, said: âIf you ask most of the lads, we would rather get on with it. We are definitely ready." Posted by: Yosemite Sam 2003-03-13 |
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