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Sandstorm grounds US attack
26/03/2003 10:29 - (SA)
Southwestern Iraq - A blizzard of choking dust kept the 101st Airborne Division's fleet of more than 270 attack helicopters out of the battle for Iraq for the second day on Wednesday, officers said.
Colonel Greg Gass, commander of 101 Aviation Brigade, said the division had been poised to strike from its forward base in southwestern Iraq when the sandstorm hit on Tuesday.
"We have got out here and we have got our stuff on the ground. We've got everything we need to carry out the mission, but the weather is absolutely horrid," he said as gusts of up to 50 knots whipped the desert encampment.
"In this weather you can't fly, you can't even drive."
The weather has prevented the 101st's highly mobile light infantry and lethal Apache strike helicopters from conducting any combat operations since they moved into Iraq from Kuwait earlier this week.
Gass said there were growing concerns that the helicopters' sensitive equipment might be damaged in the storm, which was also reducing visibility to a few metres and making life uncomfortable for the troops.
"You can't tie down your aircraft here. Sometimes your aircraft can be turned over by the wind. If it gets up above 50 knots that's a big concern," Gass said.
He said the aircraft would have to be thoroughly inspected once the weather cleared.
- AFX
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