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Stealths Gear Up for Action
Albuquerque Journal January 14, 2003
By Miguel Navrot and Rene Romo

Middle East Likely Destination From Holloman Base

The upcoming overseas deployment of stealth fighter jets from New Mexico is among the latest moves to bolster U.S. forces in the Middle East.
Late Saturday, official word reached Holloman Air Force Base that F-117A fighter jets there will leave stateside for an indefinite time. Holloman houses 51 stealth fighters and their only two combat squadrons. Base officials didn't disclose how many jets or pilots will be tapped, or where they are going. Yet it is almost certain specialty mechanics and many others who maintain the jets will deploy as well.
"We've been kind of stepping up and jetting up for this for several weeks, because we had an idea it might come down eventually," said Col. James Hunt, 49th Fighter Wing commander. "For the next couple of weeks, we are going to work extra hard to make sure our aircraft are ready to go."
Deploying pilots will fly the jets overseas themselves, making stops along the way. No destination was made public Monday during a news conference.
The Associated Press reported one squadron of the stealth fighters was included in the latest Persian Gulf order signed by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
Stealth fighters will be used in any first wave against Iraqi air defenses and communication assets, said Patrick Garrett, associate analyst with Washington think tank Globalsecurity.org. With Iraqi radar disabled, heavier bombers like the B-2 Spirit and the B-52 Stratofortress will follow.
Both B-2s and B-52s are reportedly already deployed to the Indian Ocean atoll Diego Garcia. As for the F-117As, they could be stationed in Kuwait, Qatar or if the United States secures permission to use its airspace Saudi Arabia, Garrett said.
"It is going to be fascinating to see how those two operate together," Garrett said, referring to the F-117A and the B-2, which also has stealth capabilities.
At Holloman, airmen who may deploy are receiving their annual chemical and biological warfare training earlier than scheduled, base spokeswoman Maj. Tina Barber-Matthew said. That testing is scheduled for today.
Stealths were last deployed for combat in 1999, to Kosovo, for Operation Allied Force. Twenty-four jets participated, and one was struck down by a Serbian rocket.
Hunt, noting the base is prepared, said "nobody likes to go to war."
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