European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 27, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday october 27,1991 the stars and stripes b Page 9militarysuperbomb got their attention Crew tells of dropping Gbu-28 on iraqi Bunker by Amy Geiszler Jones . Bureau Raf Lakenheath England the biggest fear running through it. Col. Dave Whites mind on feb. 27 was flying the f-111f aardvark fighter bomber almost right Over Baghdad with the telltale red plume of afterburners streaking through the dark sky. Next to White in the cockpit was capt. Tom Himes the weapons systems officer who feared failing to hit the target. Up until that night on his 26 previous missions head hit 100 percent of his targets. And the expectations Riding on this flight were High. They were one of two f-111f aircrews picked to deliver the 4,700-Pound Gbu-28 super bomb developed and deployed to the persian Gulf by the air Force in 17 Days. The Gbu-28 was Industry a answer to the air forces need for a conventional weapon that was heavy enough to penetrate Concrete fortified bunkers buried 100 or More feet below the ground. No such weapon existed in their inventory last Winter until the super bomb a development. At a news conference Friday at Lakenheath White Himes and the weapons loaders and builders of the Gbu-28 told of their experiences with the bomb. Although two of Lulfs participated in the Mission that night involving the Gbu-28, Only one actually hit the target. The bomb delivered by the plane carrying it. Col. Ken Combs Pilot and maj. Jerry Hust weapons systems officer was off target. The super bomb had Only been through two tests in the United states before its deployment to taif saudi Arabia from where the 48th tac fighter Wing prov was waging War against Iraq. The Wing based at Raf Lakenheath has since changed its name to the 48th fighter Wing. Their target that night was an iraqi hardened underground command and control Bunker at the a1 Taji Airfield North of Baghdad a facility that the 2,000-Pound Blu-109 bombs had failed to penetrate. The of Lulfs had been using the Blu-109s on the iraqis hardened aircraft shelters. A few hours after the Bunker was hit the cease fire was called. A i would say its coincidence a said White of the timing. A it probably had a lot to do with it but we can to say for sure that it was actually the reason that started the cease firebug it sure got their  it was on their third pass Over the target a which looked like a piece of dirt the size of a football Field with visible garage Type doors at its perimeters a that Himes pushed the release Button for the bomb. Videotape of the target and the bomb hit were shown Friday. The Only sign the target had been hit was a Small White puff spraying from the Center of the screen As the bomb penetrated the dirt. A few seconds later Himes pointed to one of the perimeter garage doors flying off. White and Himes both refused to specify their Altitude and Speed during the Mission. White did say that they were flying above 10,000 feet with afterburners. A we normally did no to engage afterburners Over Baghdad at night. It Wasny to a Good idea a said White who racked up 22 combat missions during the persian Gulf War. Another concern for White Quot 41, was that the f-111f had burned a lot of fuel flying with the afterburners. The Gbu-28 super bomb is loaded onto an Al 1 if at taif saudi Arabia on feb. 27. For a amps staff sgt. John Proul the fighter bomber required an emergency refuelling after the strike on the Way Back to taif. A my biggest fear in the whole Mission was the fear of failure. It was not the fear of getting shot Down a said Himes who has been a weapons systems officer on f-111s for the past three years of his eight year air Force career. The Story of the making of the Gbu-28 involves the tracking Down of Cut up army gun barrels hurried tests and no Exchange of formal contracts according to the Dallas morning news. When air Force reconnaissance photographs started coming in after the air War started Jan. 17, they showed commanders that iraqi bunkers were surviving direct hits because they were either too deep or too Well protected by reinforced Concrete. The military put out a Call to aerospace companies for ideas on How to destroy the impenetrable bunkers. A retired army Veteran working As an Engineer at Lockheed missiles and space co. In Sunnyvale calif., thought of encasing explosives in used 8-Inch barrels from self propelled howitzers that were being stockpiled by the army in Lette Kenney Arsenal in Eastern Pennsylvania. Texas instruments of Dallas developed the guidance kit for the bomb in less than two weeks a task that normally takes Many months. The company condensed its wind Tunnel and simulation tests into less than a week another process that under Normal conditions takes 18 to 24 months. Workers at Eglin fab fla., where the aeronautical systems divisions munitions development laboratories Are located outfitted the barrels with slightly reprogrammed Gbu-27 laser guidance systems and filled the gun casings with molten explosives. Although 30 of the bombs were constructed Only four were used including the Quot two tested in the United states. When the Gbu-28 bomb arrived in taif the afternoon feb. 27, the base was already Abuzz with word of the super bomb. A we had heard about it All Day Long and i thought it was one of those rumours going around again a said staff sgt. John Proulx an aircraft armament systems specialist with the 48th aircraft generation so. Lie along with two other weapons loaders were picked to Load the bomb onto the two f-111 is. Fellow weapons loader sgt. Clay Slaton 24, who has seen his share of bombs during his five year air Force career said the Gbu-28 a took the  the aircrew and the munitions people said the bomb was huge weighing in at More than two tons and measuring 18 feet 9 inches. In comparison another bomb the Gbu-24 a a weighed half that amount and measured about 12 feet. To counterbalance the Gbu-28 s enormous weight a Gbu-24 was Hung on the opposite Wing of the two f-111 is that flew on the feb. 27 Mission. A there was a lot of bomb hanging a said tech. Sgt. Larry Webber. He estimated a crowd of about 250 people gathered around the aircraft during the loading of the Gbu-28 at taif to Eye he air forces newest conventional munition. And a few people at Lakenheath also wish they could see the damage the Gbu-28 did to its target in the iraqi desert. As he watched a videotape of crumpled bits of former hardened iraqi aircraft shelters filmed by an air Force camera Crew after the War. Master sgt. Jerry Grace who helped assemble the Gbu-28 at taif said a sure would like to see that Bunker  reiterates need for guard Reserve cuts by John Lancaster the Washington Post Washington a defense Secretary Dick Cheney says his efforts to Cut the defense budget Are being undermined by congressional measures designed to protect National guard units army Reserve units and other military jobs. Cheney said Friday that recent proposals in Congress for sharply accelerated cuts in defense spending done to make sense in Light of congressional efforts to maintain National guard and Reserve strength at close to the existing level of 1.15 million positions. The Pentagon has proposed cutting these by 245, Xhu during the next five years for an Overall savings that Cheney has estimated at $2 1 billion. A a it a going to come out of personnel or it s not going to come at All a Cheney said in a meeting with reporters and editors of the Washington Post. A that is the Only Way i get fast. Money and Congress won t even let me take it Down As fast As i already want to take  Cheney a comments highlighted the escalating Battle Between the defense department and Congress Over the proper budgetary response to the collapse of the Warsaw pact and a diminished soviet threat. Congressional leaders particularly in the House have criticized the Pentagon for pursuing hugely expensive weapons programs such As the b-2 bomber but they have been reluctant to reduce spending on personnel a category that Cheney said represents 47 percent of the defense department budget. Parochial interests explain at least part of the resistance to Cheney a personnel plan. With thousands of armoires in communities across the United states the National guard and the reserves Are a source of jobs As Well As considerable local Pride. Congressional offices have been flooded with protests from local elected officials reacting to planned or rumoured closures. Congressional supporters say the preserves played a valuable supporting role in the persian Gulf War. They contend it would be particularly unjust to Cut such jobs in the midst of a recession. Reservists and guardsmen or a weekend warriors a As they Are sometimes known typically pursue civilian careers while training one weekend each month and spending two weeks a year on Active duty