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Iraq
(Aussie) Special Forces find underground weapons base
2003-04-18
From Sydney Morning Herald
The Australian Defence Force says its special forces in Iraq have found more than 50 Soviet-made fighter jets, a chemical-proof bunker and a vast store of anti-aircraft guns and munitions at an Iraqi base west of Baghdad.
Guess Mr Amir will have to lower his inventory report. I'm not going to ask why they've got them hidden in bunkers when they're afraid to fly them...
The Australian commander in Iraq, Brigadier Maurie McNarn, said troops had also found a French-made Roland anti-aircraft missile system, although it was too early to say when it was acquired and how. He said secret dialogues with Iraqi air force commanders had played a large role in preventing those weapons being used against the coalition.

The coalition had bombed the base early in the war but the extent of the weapons cache was not revealed until SAS troops, commandos from the 4RAR battalion and specialists from the Incident Response Regiment searched the base last week. The troops, 200 in all, came up against some armed resistance during the raid but soon secured control of the base. "It was far more extensive than we first thought," Brigadier McNarn said. The planes included 51 fully operational Soviet-made MiGs, including three advanced Foxbat MiG-25s. Brigadier McNarn said the planes would have presented a serious threat to the coalition if they had been used. However, the Iraqi air force never got off the ground during the conflict, giving the coalition freedom to bomb Iraqi troops and command bases.
I don't think the Iraqi air force even woke up during the conflict...
"We established means of contacting some senior Iraqis and we also sent them some personal messages saying 'you really don't want to do this'," Brigadier McNarn said. "We got some indications back through a number of the channels we set up ... that they didn't want to fight." The commander said special forces had found an underground bunker that had been designed to withstand chemical and biological attacks and a training centre for handling weapons of mass destruction. Brigadier McNarn said troops were continuing to explore the base for any weapons of mass destruction.
Hat tip to "Sgt Stryker"...
Posted by:Old Patriot

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