Team Redstone's Role in Operation
DESERT SHIELD/DESERT STORM
PATRIOT BATTERY, SWA
INTRODUCTION
The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait during the early morning hours of 2 August 1990 initiated
a chain of events leading to the largest deployment and subsequent combat use of Army
missiles in U.S. history. Backed by the United Nations (U.N.) as well as the combined
might of a 28-member coalition, the United States drew a "line in the sand" in
defense of Saudi Arabia and for the liberation of Kuwait. Supporting this action, known to
the world as Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm (ODS), was the technological and
logistical know-how of the Army elements located at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
Virtually every one of the Army's fielded missile systems managed and supported at
Redstone Arsenal were sent to Southwest Asia (SWA). Three general types of missiles were
deployed: air defense (AVENGER, CHAPARRAL, STINGER, HAWK, and PATRIOT); antiarmor (DRAGON,
TOW [tube-launched, optically-tracked, wire-guided], HELLFIRE, and SHILLELAGH); and
artillery (HYDRA-70, MLRS [Multiple Launch Rocket System], and the Army TACMS [Army
Tactical Missile System]). Of these systems PATRIOT, DRAGON, HELLFIRE, HYDRA-70,
MLRS,
TOW, and the Army TACMS were fired in combat. The lack of targets was the primary reason
that most of the air defense systems were not employed.
The U.S. Army Missile Command (MICOM) also supported other systems such as the
Ground/Vehicle Laser Locator Designator (G/VLLD), the Mast Mounted Sight (MMS), the M-901
Improved TOW Vehicle (ITV), the Forward Area Alerting Radar (FAAR), and various night
sights that provided coalition forces with a night-fighting capability not available to
the opposing Iraqi army. In addition, "the extremely accurate laser guided bombs that
were so effective during the air war were a modern version of a concept that came out of
MICOM's [Research, Development and Engineering (RD&E) Center]...more than 25 years
ago."
The military and civilian personnel assigned to the Program Executive Offices
(PEOs) at
Redstone and to MICOM shared in the success of the coalition soldiers who fought to free
Kuwait from Iraqi domination. Without the technical and logistical expertise of the
organizations located at the arsenal, the operational readiness of the systems deployed in
support of ODS would have been impossible to maintain. "Getting equipment ready for
deployment,...upgrading systems, filling unit repair parts shortages, arranging shipment,
expediting deliveries, and speeding up procurements were among the tasks
accomplished."
The Persian Gulf theater of operations posed a number of production, acquisition,
spare/repair parts supply, and maintenance challenges for the MICOM/PEO community. The
harsh desert climate and the logistical immaturity of the theater of operations were the
two biggest factors impacting the operational readiness of the sophisticated missile and
rocket systems deployed to SWA by the Army. But Operation Desert Storm also provided a
unique opportunity to see how well the Army's inventory of advanced weapons functioned in
actual combat conditions.
This short narrative describes the weapon systems deployed to SWA and the support
provided to keep these systems functioning at required levels of performance throughout
the conflict. It also examines the moral support given not only to Redstone Arsenal
soldiers deployed to the Persian Gulf but to family members left behind. The challenges
met, the successes achieved, the obstacles overcome, the lessons learned are all
significant parts of Redstone Arsenal's role in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm.
FILE OUTLINE
Chapter I - COMMAND ADMINISTRATION
Chapter II - COMMAND AND CONTROL
Chapter III - MISSILE AND ROCKET SYSTEMS DEPLOYED TO
SOUTHWEST ASIA
Chapter IV - OTHER MICOM-SUPPORTED SYSTEMS DEPLOYED TO
SOUTHWEST ASIA
Chapter V - MICOM FUNCTIONAL SUPPORT FOR OPERATION DESERT
SHIELD/STORM
APPENDIX - Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm Chronology
GLOSSARY
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