T1B

Tulsa-based fliers bomb al-Qaida camp

By MANNY GAMALLO
World Staff Writer
7/25/2007

The Tulsa-based 138th Fighter Wing of the Oklahoma Air National Guard wasted no time in making a name for itself in Iraq by helping destroy an al-Qaida training camp.

F-16s, their tails emblazoned with warrior chief and Tulsa markings, roared off the Balad Air Base 40 miles north of Baghdad on Saturday and took out the camp near Karbala, 60 miles southwest of the capital.

There were four planes involved in the attack, and each of the jet fighters dropped 500- and 1,000-pound bombs on the target, destroying the camp and reducing al-Qaida's power to launch terror attacks in the region, the U.S. military said.

It was no small feat for the 138th Fighter Wing, the bulk of which had been in Iraq for just three weeks before the camp was targeted.

The mission was featured in Air Force news.

It also drew high praise from Air Force Col. Charles Moore, group commander for the 332nd Expeditionary Operations, which joined in the attack.

"I could not be prouder of the way our airmen performed on Saturday. The events of this past weekend once again demonstrate the Air Force's ability to deliver decisive combat air power any place and at any time," he said.

The 138th Fighter Wing is operating with the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad.

Saturday's mission was a coordinated attack in which air controllers on the ground cleared the F-16s to drop their deadly guided munitions on the camp.

Authorities said the destruction of the camp dealt a serious blow to al-Qaida's ability to attack the Iraqi government, coalition forces and innocent civilians.

No estimate was available on the number of terrorists who may have been killed in the attack.

News of the attack was well-received at the 138th Fighter Wing's base, located next to Tulsa International Airport.

The wing commander, Col. William Hadaway, said he is "extremely proud of the men and women of the 138th Fighter Wing."

"They are all dedicated and professional individuals who are doing an outstanding job," Hadaway said.

"It takes each one of them to make our mission a success. This is what we train for; this is what it is all about."

Moore said the camp's destruction is part of an aggressive plan to hunt, capture or kill terrorists bent on destabilizing Iraq.

"Our airmen and other coalition forces are helping Iraq achieve a stable government, and ultimately helping the United States and our allies to defeat terrorism," he said.

About 190 members of the 138th Fighter Wing left from Tulsa en route to Iraq on June 27.

They were joining another 100 members of the fighter wing, including the F-16 fighters, who had been deployed to Iraq a month earlier.

Most members of the 138th Fighter Wing are no strangers to Iraq and the region, having been there before.

The 138th Fighter Wing was expected to be deployed in Iraq for two months.

With this in mind, Hadaway praised and thanked "local employers for their continued support" of 138th Fighter Wing personnel.

The Oklahoma personnel replaced the 180th Fighter Wing of the Ohio Air National Guard based at Toledo.

The Ohio Air Guard lost a pilot in June during a takeoff from Balad.

Maj. Kevin Sonnenberg, 42, of Napoleon, Ohio, died in his F-16. The plane was from the Oklahoma Air National Guard.

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These guys have only been over there a few weeks. Nice to see F-16s with "Tulsa" in red and a Native American logo on their tails blazing down on the freaks. I doubt they did.

rack those folks !

You're resorting to airstrikes to pacify a population you've been occupying for 4+ years?

Do I need to go into detail as to why the operation is a complete failure?


You lost. Go home.

Martyred wrote:You're resorting to airstrikes to pacify a population you've been occupying for 4+ years?

Do I need to go into detail as to why I am a complete dick sucking jew bastard fool ?

FTFY

Martyred wrote:You're resorting to airstrikes to pacify a population you've been occupying for 4+ years?

Do I need to go into detail as to why the operation is a complete failure?


You lost. Go home.

We lost? What's our kill/death ratio, still around 10-1? Yeah, we're really getting our asses kicked. :rollem:

Derron called Marty a "jew bastard"?


BWAAAHAHAHAHA

mvscal wrote:

RadioFan wrote:It was no small feat for the 138th Fighter Wing,

A routine CAS mission is "no small feat"?!?

Uh...OK. I guess wiping their own asses is also no small feat...

Of course it was no small feat. They've only been in town for three weeks.

Some of them are still getting over jet lag.

And they're all in the Tulsa National Guard. Trust me, it was no small feat. :D

It was also no Little Feat.

mvscal wrote:

RadioFan wrote:It was no small feat for the 138th Fighter Wing,

A routine CAS mission is "no small feat"?!?

Umm... are F-16's carrying out tactical bombing missions using 1,000 and 500 lb ordnance "routine" these days?

I guess times they are a changing. We have all these sophisticated fighter aircraft desgned for air to air combat, and we're using them as bombers.

So, what are the all bomber aircraft doing? Hauling bottled water?

mvscal wrote:The F-16 is actually one of, if not the most commonly used aircraft for close air support. They've been used in that role for well over a decade.

Ok, if you say so.

I guess after the fall of the Soviet Union, there weren't many threats left from MIG's, so they must have retro-fitted a bunch of them.

And bear with my ignorance here mv, but does this aircraft really look capable of delivering heavy ordnance?



What, they might be able to lug around two of those big critters, at best?

I'll bet those pilots feel like they're driving a Ferrari whilst towing a dump truck. Has to suck for their maneuverability, wouldn't you say?

mvscal wrote:It was intended as multi-role platform from the get go. The Israelis bombed the Osiriak reactor in Iraq with F-16s in 1981.

With 1,000 lb. bombs?

I'll bow to your superior knowledge of military history, but I thought those were F-15's.

Either way, Rack Israel for a job well done.

War Wagon wrote:

mvscal wrote:It was intended as multi-role platform from the get go. The Israelis bombed the Osiriak reactor in Iraq with F-16s in 1981.

With 1,000 lb. bombs?

I'll bow to your superior knowledge of military history, but I thought those were F-15's.

Either way, Rack Israel for a job well done.

Stick to Raymond order pickers, reaches, and pallet jacks... and the Exide batteries.

mvscal wrote:I've seen them in action many, many times. They are a very capable strike platform.

Ok, I did a little research, and they are indeed some capable mofos.

And no, they weren't retrofitted, but there were many significant upgrades and design modifications over the past 30 years. Seems one of the greatest innovations was the development of JDAM technology.

I was a big fan of the F-15 Eagle, and it seems the muckety mucks in the USAF were also, as they strongly opposed the development and procurement of the F-16 Falcon, first produced in 1976. Turns out that some members of Congress thought the F-16 was worth pursuing, as it could be produced at a much lower cost. Thus General Dynamics and Northrop were allotted huge sums of money for R & D on this light weight aircraft.

The rest is history. The F-16 in all it's variant models, is the most widely used multi-platform capable fighter aircraft in the world, with about 20 other countries also having them in service. They're still in production today, but only for export.

Atomic Punk wrote:

War Wagon wrote:

mvscal wrote:It was intended as multi-role platform from the get go. The Israelis bombed the Osiriak reactor in Iraq with F-16s in 1981.

With 1,000 lb. bombs?

I'll bow to your superior knowledge of military history, but I thought those were F-15's.

Either way, Rack Israel for a job well done.

Stick to Raymond order pickers, reaches, and pallet jacks... and the Exide batteries.

Raymonds are JUNK- I think I know Wags just enough to figure that he HAS to be a Hyster man. Those trucks are the SHIT. :wink:

RadioFan wrote:F-16s, their tails emblazoned with warrior chief and Tulsa markings, roared off the Balad Air Base 40 miles north of Baghdad on Saturday and took out the camp near Karbala, 60 miles southwest of the capital.

I doubt it.

SOP, atleast back when I was on active duty was to paint all aircraft flat grey when they fly combat missions. The only markings would be functional or squadron identifying marks. They do this to make the aircraft as invisible as possible. A big flamming injun painted on the tail looks cool, but, makes the aircraft more of a target.