(New York Times) Eric Schmitt with Philip Shenon - The U.S. military has deployed a sophisticated ground-radar system to help protect allied and American forces in the Persian Gulf region from Iraqi missile attacks. The Joint Tactical Ground Station is a mobile system that alerts commanders to hostile missile launchings, using data from space-based satellites. American commanders also plan to deploy Predator and Global Hawk surveillance aircraft, which can patrol continuously for 24 hours, as well as E-8C Joint Stars ground-surveillance planes, to detect mobile launcher movements and guide bombers to their targets faster with improved communications equipment. Special Operations Forces will probably deploy to western Iraq in the opening hours of any war to destroy missile launchers that threaten Israel.
2002-12-26 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive