INVASION: IRAQ
Pearl-based sub involved in first strike on Iraq
Isle military trying to avoid security gridlock
Hawaii-based units in Persian Gulf region
The latest developments
Web sites offer military and war information
A Pearl Harbor-based Los Angeles-class nuclear submarine was one of four Pacific Fleet warships that launched the first cruise missile strikes against Baghdad last night. Pearl-based sub involved
in first strike on Iraq3 other Pacific Fleet ships were
By Gregg Kakesako
also in on the initial attack
gkakesako@starbulletin.comThe nuclear submarine USS Cheyenne, whose skipper is Cmdr. J.C. Doty, fired the first salvo of cruise missiles. The Navy declined to say how many missiles the 360-foot Cheyenne, which left Pearl Harbor with its crew of 130 sailors on July 3, fired. At last report the Cheyenne was protecting the USS Lincoln aircraft carrier battle group, which is on extended duty in the Persian Gulf.
The three other Pacific Fleet warships that launched cruise missiles were the cruiser USS Bunker Hill and destroyer USS Milius, both from San Diego, and the USS Cowpen, a destroyer from Yokosuka, Japan.
The other two warships were from the Atlantic Fleet, the Navy reported.
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Isle military trying to avoid security gridlock
By Star-Bulletin Staff / citydesk@starbulletin.comSo far, the Navy is the only service with a plan to help lessen the impact of heightened security at Pearl Harbor and other naval installations.
The Navy has instructed workers at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard -- the state's largest civilian employer with a labor force of 3,000 -- and other areas on the base that some of them may have to stay home or park elsewhere as the threat level increases.
However, Lt. Cmdr. Jane Campbell, Navy spokeswoman, said "this is just a plan, and there are no immediate plans to implement it."
Most of Hawaii's military bases are at "Force Protection Level Bravo," which is a step below normal. Random car checks are conducted, but those entering need to show a military identification card or some other picture identification.
There are no contingency plans established at Hickam Air Force Base, an Air Force spokesman reported.
Troy Griffin, an Army spokesman, said "the issue is being studied. ... We are looking at alternatives." He said the Army does have the ability to allow its civilian workers to alter their starting times. More than 7,200 civilians work at Fort Shafter near Kalihi and Schofield Barracks in Wahiawa.
At Marine Corps Base Hawaii, a spokesman said Marine guards check the military identification cards or picture ID cards of anyone attempting to enter the Kaneohe Bay installation. "All large vehicles are searched," he said.
The Air Force employs about 2,000 civilians, while another 8,000 work for the Navy and the Marine Corps in Hawaii.
On Sept. 11, 2001, following terrorist attacks in New York City and on the Pentagon, the military undertook searches of all cars entering any installation, using dogs, and did visible checks requiring drivers to open the trunk and hood of their vehicles. Only people with military identification cards were allowed in.
Those security checks created a major traffic headache with some people waiting as long as five hours to enter Pearl Harbor and Schofield Barracks. In many cases, drivers were trapped in long lines since there was no way for them to turn around.
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Hawaii-based units in Persian Gulf region
By Star-Bulletin Staff / citydesk@starbulletin.comNavy
Marines
- Destroyer USS Paul Hamilton (part of the USS Lincoln battle group)
- Frigate USS Reuben James (part of the USS Lincoln battle group)
- Frigate USS Crommelin
- Cruiser USS Chosin (part of the USS Nimitz battle group)
- Destroyer USS O'Kane
- Submarines (eight): USS Cheyenne, Honolulu, Louisville, Chicago, Columbia, Key West, Los Angeles and Pasadena
- Seabees: 20 belonging to the 30th Naval Construction Regiment at Pearl Harbor, and 10 reservists from Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit 303
Army
- 250 Marines from the 1st Radio Battalion from Kaneohe Bay
- 40 reservists from the 4th Force Reconnaissance Marines
- 200 Marines from Camp Smith at the Marines Central Command Headquarters in Bahrain who left in February 2002 as part of the war against terrorism
Hawaii Air National Guard
- Reserves: 30th Military History detachment (three people) activated Feb. 10
- 80 Schofield Barracks and Fort Shafter soldiers
Coast Guard
- 40 from 154th Security Forces Squadron
- 24 from the 297th Air Traffic Control Squadron
- 14 from Combat Communications Squadron
- Buoy Tender Walnut with crew of 50
AP / ADAM SORENSON / BRITISH MINISTRY OF DEFENSE
Members of the Royal Irish Rangers move toward Iraq in the Kuwaiti desert in preparation for possiblw war against Iraq Wednesday March 19, 2003, as they head towards Iraq.
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The latest developments
Key developments in America's war against Iraq, compiled by the Associated Press:
- Ground war started as the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division attacked Iraqi troops with howitzers and multiple launch rocket systems, firing more than 100 shells.
- Another round of cruise missiles was launched against Republican Guard strongholds Thursday night in Baghdad, U.S. military officials said. Heavy detonations and the crackle of anti-aircraft fire were heard in Baghdad.
- The U.S. military opened its military campaign against Iraq, striking "targets of military opportunity" -- sites near Baghdad where Saddam and top aides were believed to be >> with cruise missiles and precision-guided bombs.
- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said "the days of the Saddam Hussein regime are numbered," adding that the first attack of the war hit a senior Iraqi leadership position.
- With orange flames visible in the direction of the southern Iraqi oil center Basra, Rumsfeld confirmed there are reports the Iraqi regime may have ignited "three or four" oil wells.
- The Turkish parliament approved a plan to let U.S. warplanes fly over Turkey in the war against Iraq. The measure falls short of Washington's initial request for permission to base 62,000 troops in the country.
- President Bush, after a brief night of sleep, conferred with National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice at 6 a.m. Thursday. Bush began work in the Oval Office at 6:50 a.m.
- Saddam gave his own televised speech, promising an Iraqi victory and calling the U.S. attack "a shameful crime." Baghdad echoed with the thud of explosions and the shrieks of air sirens; anti-aircraft tracers crisscrossed its skies.
- Iraq fired missiles across the Kuwaiti border toward U.S. troops and at least one was intercepted by a Patriot missile. No injuries or damage were reported; there was no immediate evidence of chemical or biological warheads
- The State Department issued a warning to U.S. citizens abroad that they face a heightened threat of terrorism and anti-American violence.
AP / DALLAS MORNING NEWS/ DAVID LEESON
A tank crew stands on top of their M1Ai Abrams tank lined up in a front position Wednesday night, March 19, 2003 as the U.S. Army 3rd Brigade prepared to move north to a location near the Iraq border. The crew named their tank "Apophis" after the Egyptian god of death and war.
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Web sites offer military and war information
By Anthony Sommer / tsommer@starbulletin.comThere are some good online sources of information about the war in Iraq.
The three best news services that cover the military worldwide, often revealing things the military would rather not reveal, are Jane's, Inside Defense and Defense Systems Daily.
All are subscription services (and quite pricey), but the online excerpts available to nonsubscribers have information you will not find anywhere else. The Web sites are:
A site with lots of links to U.S. military Web sites is the Department of Defense's Defense Link. Keep in mind that what the Pentagon calls "news" is really just a news release that no one has questioned. But lots of good background information is available:
Northrop Grumman, a major defense contractor, has a very comprehensive set of links on its Web site:
One of the most comprehensive Web sites on the U.S. military, with detailed descriptions of weapons systems, is provided by the Federation of American Scientists, a nonprofit group founded by Manhattan Project scientists to provide scientific information to policy debates:
