|
US plea for British base to bomb Iraq
The United States has made a formal request to launch 'offensive actions' from the British-owned island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean as America continues its build-up for the campaign against Saddam Hussein. Ministry of Defence officials confirmed that the request was being considered positively."Hey, Tony. I want to bomb Iraq. OK, George, no problem." The base is a crucial staging post for the B-2 stealth bombers, which are being moved from their home at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. They can be refuelled on Diego Garcia before travelling on to Iraq to undertake bombing missions. They are putting up temporary hangers to do maintenance on B-2s. A number of the bombers will also be based at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, another essential staging post on the route to Iraq. Cuts the distance to the target by half, allows you to generate more sorties. Posted by: Steve 2002-11-25 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=8058 |