European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 23, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 6 a a a the stars and stripes wednesday january 23,1991desolate desert formidable foe for both sides in Northern saudi Arabia a in the Dawn chill when the Breeze is Rich in scents and too gentle to carry Sand the desert can be thrilling even Beautiful. But it is a hell of a place to fight a War. The Broad Swath of no Many a land separating desert storm forces from their iraqi foes defies All cliches about the arabian desert. It is Sandy but Rocky. There Are dunes but also marshes. Now with sporadic Rains there Are lakes and rivulets and sinkholes called a Sab Khasi that can Swallow a tank. Mostly the Northern desert is a desolate featureless moonscape that Only a bedouin could love. Soon it is Likely to be a killing Field. Israeli strategists with Long experience note that the desert favors and hinders both sides alike. Since mid August the saudi desert has been dotted with new shifting hummocks tents of Leafy plastic camouflage netting with heavy gun barrels poking out ominously toward the North. Makeshift shelters cover hundreds of thousands of troops under a half dozen flags. Some live in tents. Others spread Bedroll on cots or directly on the ground with the scorpions and snakes. Troops have studied their surroundings for the purpose now at hand. Most Are eager for combat not for the love of Battle but because they Are convinced that Only by storming Kuwait will they escape the desert. No one underestimates what lies ahead. Iraqi forces Are dug in with reinforced bunkers tank traps and Carthern berms barriers of compacted Earth. Much of Kuwait is Marshland with treacherous soft spots and impassable terrain. Even Short of the Border the desert is formidable. Sharp rocks and Nasty ruts Jolt vehicles beyond their endurance. Army Drivers go through tires five times faster than Normal. Difficult Access along with operational reasons has kept Forward troops at the posts. Their Only visitors Are the Camel herders who sell fresh milk known genetically As a bedouin every shift in the weather takes its toll. In summer the heat turned Metal surfaces to Waffle Irons sapping strength from the hardiest. Now when Niht winds blow the desert is glacial. For Days on end driving Rains streamed through the porous netting of the camouflage material soaking troops to the skin. A i took the mail to one unit and some old boy came out looked like head fallen in a mud puddle a said Dana Patterson an army Engineer. A a he a Only been out on a guard hot or cold there is always the Sand. Desert trained troops have seen nothing like it Sand As Fine As foot powder that works into the deepest crevices of their Odies and their gear. Tank Crews sometimes Stop twice a Day to spend hours dismantling gun mechanisms for a thorough cleaning. Manuals Call for Light Oil on Metal surfaces but that Only manufactures sandpaper. Of All the combatants poised for desert storm the tank Crews Are most aware of the terrain. Especially for those in the smaller m-60 tanks it will mean the differ-1 ence Between Success and failure. A a we la have to outman Euver them and not let them get the drop on us a said capt. Rob Philon a . Marine tank officer whose Shorter Range m-60s must face laser equipped soviet made t-72s. War in the Gulf British Marine it. Cpl. Ivan Imiolek and fellow soldiers clean their weapons in the saudi hazardous duty starts on Road As Convoy streams northward editors note this article is based on information gathered by Pentagon Pool reporters by the stars and stripes with the . Forces saudi Arabia the British along this Highway to the North Call it the most dangerous place in saudi Arabia. The threat Isnit from incoming scuds or artillery barrages a a there Haven to been any. The danger is the traffic the incredibly heavy traffic. For Days this Highway has been clogged by a seemingly endless Convoy of military muscle. It is the armed might of the United states arid its allies moving Northwest for a ground punch at Iraq. The British soldiers say they hear of or see several accidents Evcic Day. They be heard of fatalities but have no confirmation of those reports. A a in be driven 1,500 Miles since yesterday a said Cpl. Roger Davis 29, of Oxford England. A a in be never seen anything like this and i Hope i done to Ever a 1 a a a. A a. A. Davis was taking a break at a makeshift Roadside rest Stop really just a tent attached to a truck. Inside British soldiers prepare meals 24 hours a Day for the British truck Drivers who Stop by. On the Road mile after mile of tanks artillery and other weapons of War Are trucked at a steady 45 Mph. Spilling into the Highway from smaller roads Are the machines from the Allied coalition a mostly British american and French. The Arab coalition forces Are already at the front. The Convoy is All that moves in this part of the desert. The usual herds of camels have been removed by their bedouin owners and in towns Only the saudi police in Blue and White cruisers watch the Parade of hardware pass. To the left and right dark Green Apache helicopters race ahead barely 30 feet above the desert floor As if anxious to initiate the coming Battle. Maj. Tim Timmons 41, of Deming n.m., is logistics officer for the 937th engr group. A month ago he requested 181 heavy transport trucks to help move the three battalions in the group. When the Day arrived to begin the move a the first Day of the War a he had 13. As a result the move to the front has taken longer than expected. A you never have enough haul assets. Never a Timmons said. As the 937th engr group vehicles passed through one Small Village four trucks jumped in line ahead of them from the right. Standing on one of the trucks was a Soldier holding the Flag of Kuwait. Everyone in this slow moving caravan is headed Home eventually but the kuwaitis will reach Home first. In land Battle editors note this article is based on information gathered by Pentagon combat Pool reporters on the scene with the . Army a Vii corps in saudi Arabia by the stars and stripes As the Allied mechanized Armada drives North for a showdown with Iraq Vii corps Apache attack helicopter pilots say they re poised to Lead the ground offensive deep behind enemy lines. The corps the main armoured task Force of operation desert storm Hopes that a decisive air attack in the first hours of the ground War could significantly reduce casualties and pave the Way for a March to Kuwait according to Pool reports written Over the weekend and released tuesday. A when we strike its going to be Swift and its going to be deep a said col. Johnnie b. Hitt 45, commander of the 11th aviation brigade from Hillesheim Germany. A once the army goes its pulling out All meanwhile at training areas near the front tankers from the 1st army div and 1st inf div have been practising final combat drills and live firings before taking Battle positions on the Allied line. Quot gis said they Wake up each Day ready for a fight. A a we re in our tanks engines running and radios on before the Sun comes up a said sgt. 1st class John Funk master gunner from co b 1st in 37th Armor regt. Most 1st army div soldiers began leaving Germany in december and staff officers said saturday that the outfit will be at a full combat effectiveness in less than two weeks. A when we get up to full strength we should be one of a if not the a strongest units in the theater a said maj. Guy Swan assistant operations officer for the division. Because the units trained in Germany to defend against the vastly larger soviet army division officers said they a be Well equipped to fight against the iraqis who outnumber them 2-to-l, a commanders Are putting their Faith in the ability of . Reconnaissance to find iraqi targets. Then they plan to catch them in a Vise Between air and ground forces. This so called air land Battle a has been our Bible for a generation of offi cers a said capt. David Brown 29, operations officer for an infantry battalion. A it is what we do extremely for the Brunt of their air Power the ground troops Are counting on the hundreds of Apache helicopters in desert storm. A i think the Apache helicopter will be the most critical link to this ground War because of the mobility and deep strike capability a said it. Col. Terry Branham commander of a Vii corps Apache Squadron. A a it la take away any momentum he Saddam Hussein might has an estimated 4,000 tanks mostly soviet made versus a Little More than 1,000 for the army and marines. However the . Has 1,500 helicopters to iraqis 300
