Operation Special Delivery (17 January 1991) was a United States Delta Force operation during the Gulf War. A force of four Delta Force operatives destroyed Iraq's early warning radars and SAM missile sites at an airbase in southern Iraq, paving the way for United Nations airstrikes on Iraq.
Background[]
On 16 January 1991, the United Nations deadline for Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait expired, and the United States and its Coalition allies were authorized to use all measures to force Iraq out of Kuwait. Cruise missiles were launched from warships in the Persian Gulf to mark the beginning of Operation Desert Storm. The next day, John Bradley's Delta Force team was ordered to destroy Iraq's early warning radars.
Before the air campaign could begin, it was essential that Iraq's early-warning radar installations along the Saudi Arabian border were destroyed. One of the key installations was located inside the Iraqi air force base near an-Nagaf. Bradley's team was airdropped near the airbase, and it was sent to enter the base undetected and destroy or disable the SAM emplacements protecting the airbase from airborne attack.
The second phase of the mission was to retrieve any data concerning Iraq's SCUD launcher capability. The Delta Force operatives were to search for the information within the base mainframe; Iraqi computer security was lax, so retrieving the data would be no problem. The command also authorized the destruction of the Iraqi military aircraft and airbase supply buildings.
Operation[]
The shootout at the airbase
On the evening of 17 January 1991, Delta Force operatives John Bradley, Paul Foley, Mick Connors, and David Jones were dropped off in a desert canyon near the airbase. The four soldiers passed by Iraqi goatherd Abyad al-Badour, who, frightened, ran towards the base. The soldiers followed him until they came into contact with a two-man patrol in the canyon, and they soon came upon a small Iraqi Army camp. The Delta Force operatives cleared the camp and fought off several Iraqi reinforcements arriving through a tunnel; they also neutralized the occupants of a transport truck. Afterwards, they found themselves faced with several machine gun bunkers in an opening in the canyon, and the squad assaulted the bunkers head-on, securing the area after a short gun battle. Finally, they proceeded to enter the airbase, where they engaged in a massive shootout with the garrison. The squad succeeded in destroying the power generator before moving on to destroy the several SAM sites by firing at the missiles with their guns. After doing this, they assaulted the flight control tower, where they retrieved information about the SCUD sites. Their final step was to destroy the Iraqi hangar, neutralizing the planes inside. After doing this, they returned to the landing zone, where they were extracted via helicopter.
Aftermath[]
The destruction of the early-warning systems was followed up with F-15 fighter-bomber strikes against the local air defense center in an-Nagaf. Apache strike mission Alpha 2-1 flew into the area and destroyed the Early Warning Radar installation. This combined strike crippled Iraq's ability to launch intercept flights against Allied aircraft, thereby ensuring Coalition air superiority over Kuwait.
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