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#140 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:44
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#141 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:45
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#142 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:46
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August 9: TILE DAMAGE FEARED AS ATLANTIS SITS OUT HAILSTORM
While Columbia, with her repaired fuel-line coupling and borrowed part from Endeavour, safely returned to Launch Pad 39 A earlier today, NASA has another problem with Atlantis: possible hail damage during this afternoon’s hail storm. “We won’t know what the amount of damage is, if any, until Atlantis is in the Vehicle Assembly Building and platforms can be put in place to perform inspections,” said Bruce Buckingham, NASA spokesman. A strong thunderstorm, accompanied by gusting winds, lightning and hail, hit the VAB area just as workers were to move Atlantis into the VAB for fuel line repairs. Work rules prohibit workers from moving an orbiter when lightning is within 20 miles of the launch pad, so Atlantis had to sit out the storm just 60 feet from the VAB. An hour after weather warnings were canceled – at 5:00 p.m. EDT – Atlantis was moved into the VAB. A preliminary inspection at 9:00 p.m. showed no storm damage. (Chronology of KSC and KSC Related Events for 1990, KHR-15, March 1991 – edited)
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#143 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:49
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”Desert Shield” – A Line Has Been Drawn in the Sand
“Mr. President, are we at war?”
- Helen Thomas, asking President Bush during the Aug. 8 White House press briefing
AMERICA DOES NOT SEEK CONFLICT
President Bush announced Wednesday, August 8, that U.S. troops were taking up "defensive positions" in oil-rich Saudi Arabia to guard against a possible attack by Iraq. "A line has been drawn in the sand," he declared in a grim warning to Saddam Hussein. Bush would not say how many U.S. forces were being committed to the desert defense of the Saudi kingdom, and he would not say which "other nations" would join the multinational effort. Diplomatic sources in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, said U.S. Marines arrived early Thursday near Khafji, a coastal city seven miles south of the Kuwaiti border that includes an oil terminal.
Troops were arriving from the United States and overseas bases, and Bush said they "will not initiate hostilities, but they will defend themselves." U.S. government sources said at least 5,000 ground troops were involved, along with 140 sophisticated fighters and bombers and naval supply ships. Cruise missiles programmed to hit specific Iraqi sites were loaded aboard a battleship that set out Tuesday on the week-long journey to the Middle East.
Diplomatic sources said the U.S. force buildup would total at least 40,000 troops. Several other estimates ranged up to 50,000. In addition, a formidable U.S. naval fleet is gathering in and around the gulf and the Mediterranean. Bush held his regular national security briefing at the White House Thursday morning, a session sure to include the latest intelligence on the Middle East situation.
In a televised Oval Office address, Bush sharply condemned Iraqi aggression in invading Kuwait last week. He demanded "immediate, unconditional and complete" withdrawal and the restoration of the Kuwaiti government to power. Later, in a noon-hour news conference, Bush said U.S. forces would not be used to try and drive Iraq out of Kuwait. He said he hoped economic sanctions would accomplish that end. Bush sidestepped a question about what other countries would be joining a multinational force in Saudi Arabia. "I'd prefer to leave that to the Saudis to announce,” he said. He noted that British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher had said she would commit forces.
Iraq, meanwhile, said Wednesday that it has annexed Kuwait. "Our fellow citizens, history has proved that Kuwait is a part of Iraq," said a statement read on Iraqi state radio and television by an unidentified announcer. Iraq has made claims on Kuwaiti territory for years. Hussein said his people "would rather die than be humiliated" and threatened to "pluck out the eyes of those who attack the Arab nation."
Although Britain said Wednesday that it would join a multinational force, Egypt and Morocco denied U.S. reports that they would do so. The Saudi rulers have never before allowed U.S. troops onto their soil, and sources had said Arab participation in the multinational effort was a Saudi condition for doing so. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, called for an emergency Arab summit within 24 hours, and he offered to hold it in Egypt. A report said nine other Arab nations, including Saudi Arabia, had agreed to meet.
Bush also said he was concerned with the possibility that Iraq might use chemical weapons, since it has employed them in the past. "It would be intolerable and it would be dealt with very, very severely." In his televised speech, the president conceded that the Saudi defense mission "may take time and be costly" and said he would consider tapping the nation's strategic petroleum reserves to assure a ready supply of oil. He called on the oil companies not to engage in unnecessary price hikes to take advantage of the international uncertainty and urged that other oil-producing nations boost production.
Bush said he thought there were already indications that Iraq was "beginning to feel the pinch" from the economic sanctions voted earlier in the week by the United Nations. "My military objective is to see Saudi Arabia defended. Our overall objective is to see Saddam Hussein get out, go back and have the rightful regime of Kuwait in place," Bush said. Asked if the United States was at war, he replied: "We're not in a war. We have sent forces to defend Saudi Arabia. I want to be clear about what we are doing and why," Bush said. "America does not seek conflict, nor do we seek to chart the destiny of other nations. But America will stand by her friends."
"In a life of a nation, we are called upon to define who we are and what we believe. Sometimes these choices are not easy. Today, as president, I ask for your support in the decision I've made to stand up for what's right and condemn what's wrong, all in the name of peace. The stakes are high. Iraq is already a rich and powerful country that possesses the world's second largest reserves of oil and over a million men under arms," Bush said.
The President added, "If history teaches us anything, it is that we must resist aggression or it will destroy our freedoms. Appeasement does not work. As was the case in the 1930s, we see in Saddam Hussein an aggressive dictator threatening his neighbors."
NULL AND VOID
Thousands of U.S. troops poured into Saudi Arabia Thursday, August 9, and reportedly took up positions within seven miles of the Iraqi border, despite Iraq's insistence it has no plans to invade the desert kingdom. Iraq had also promised it would not invade Kuwait, which it overran a week ago and annexed on Wednesday.
Saudi Arabia's King Fahd called the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait "the most horrible aggression" in the Arab world's modern history. King Fahd, in his first public comment on the invasion, said Thursday the kingdom had sought foreign military help with great reluctance and stressed that U.S. and other troops would act only defensively. In the past, the Saudis had repeatedly rejected U.S. requests to base American forces in the strategic country.
The U.N. Security Council Thursday unanimously declared Iraq's annexation of Kuwait to be "null and void" and called on all nations to shun the government Baghdad installed in Kuwait. The vote was 15-0 on the council, which met for the third time in one week to condemn Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and to support the ousted government. The majority included the council's only Arab member, Yemen.
The resolution says, "Annexation of Kuwait by Iraq under any form and whatever pretext has no legal validity and is considered null and void." It calls upon all states and international organizations not to recognize the annexation and not to take any action that might be interpreted as indirect recognition of the annexation.
In other developments Thursday Israel launched the first test of a new missile developed to combat short-range ballistic missiles. Israel radio said it was a direct response to an Iraqi threat a day earlier. Iran, which fought a bloody eight-year war with Iraq, warned that Tehran "will not tolerate" Baghdad's annexation of Kuwait. A Foreign Ministry statement quoted by the official Islamic Republic News Agency said the Iraqi takeover brought on a "crisis" in the region.
UNLIKELY PARTNERS
"I'm not optimistic about an Arab summit," Sen. William Cohen, R-Maine, told CBS, noting the presence of Libya's Moammar Gadhafi at the gathering. The effort to win regional support for its campaign against Iraq's Saddam Hussein has the United States sounding out unlikely partners - including Iran, Syria and the Soviet Union.
Country responses to a U.S.-led multinational force to deter Iraqi aggression:
- Great Britain: Says it would participate in the multinational force, the only country offering ships and planes.
- Egypt, Morocco: Denies any agreement to participate; Egypt will host an emergency Arab summit.
- Saudi Arabia, Oman, Quatar, Bahrain, U.A.E., Kuwait: Military units of a six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council are currently in Saudi Arabia as part of a force called "Peninsula Shield," could become part of the multinational force.
- West Germany: Allows the U.S. military to use American facilities in the country as a "basis for operations" for soldiers heading to Saudi Arabia.
- Italy: Agrees to let bases in the country to be used to help facilitate transport of troops and equipment and for logistical support.
- Spain: Opposes outside intervention, allows the U.S. to use four jointly operated military bases to support U.S. troops.
- Greece: Grant permission for nine U.S. support planes to pass through Greek airspace.
- France: States "no participation is envisioned at this stage"
- Soviet Union: Silent reaction to deployment of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia
- China: States that it would respect Saudi Arabia's decision to allow U.S. troops on its soil
- Japan: Expresses support for the U.S. decision to send troops into Saudi Arabia as a defensive measure
MOST FAVOR RETALIATION
A majority of Americans favor waging war on Iraq if Baghdad tries to invade Saudi Arabia, holds hostage or kills U.S. citizens in Iraq or Kuwait, or begins to cut off world oil, a Newsweek magazine poll says. The survey of 770 people also showed that a majority of Americans do not believe a covert assassination of Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein would be a "quick way" of solving the Middle East crisis. The poll said that nearly three quarters of those surveyed believe U.S. troops were likely to become engaged in combat with Iraqi troops. It also showed that 67 percent would approve of waging a war on Baghdad if Iraqi troops invade Saudi Arabia, while 58 percent said U.S. troops should engage in battle if Iraq begins to control or cut off access to oil-rich Kuwait.
(Combined AP, UPI, Deseret News, Aug. 8, 9 & 12 – edited)
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#144 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:52
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#145 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:55
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#146 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:57
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#147 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 22:59
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August 10: ATLANTIS SUFFERS MINOR HAIL DAMAGE
Atlantis suffered 90 to 100 dings in her delicate heat-resistant tiles when she sat unprotected next to the Vehicle Assembly Building during a hailstorm yesterday; most of the tile damage is on the left side of the orbiter. NASA spokeswoman Lisa Malone said, “We’re not scheduled to fly Atlantis until after Discovery with the Ulysses solar probe in October, so we don’t expect (the tile repair) to be an impact on the schedule. Tile work will begin when Atlantis is moved from the VAB to the Orbiter Processing Facility. (Banke, Florida Today, Aug. 11, 1990 – edited)
August 14: ATLANTIS LEAVES VAB UNTOUCHED BY WATER LEAK
The orbiter Atlantis was finally towed to the Orbiter Processing Facility tonight where she awaits the start of fuel line repairs tomorrow. Yesterday, the Vehicle Assembly Building’s sprinkler system failed, allowing water to drip onto power transformers. NASA was forced to cut off power to the high bay where Atlantis was located. Kennedy Space Center spokeswoman Lisa Malone had no estimate of how much water leaked or how long the sprinkler system leaked. However, she did say that the amount of water was not “enormous.” She added that neither Atlantis nor her External Tank and Solid Rocket Boosters were doused with water. Late yesterday, two electrical panels which supply lighting to the high bay area underwent repairs. The system failure is under investigation. (Florida Today, Aug. 14, 1990 – edited)
August 15: NEW SOLID FUEL SUPPLIER PASSES BOOSTER MOTOR TEST
Thiokol Corp. successfully test-fired a Space Shuttle booster motor today, using a propellant supplied by another Utah company, Thiokol officials have announced. Solid fuel in the motor was manufactured by the Western Electrochemical Co. of Cedar City. The firing was conducted at Thiokol's test facility, 20 miles west of Brigham City. Since the first ground test of a full-sized shuttle motor in July 1977, said Thiokol spokesman Steve Lawson, every such test has been a success.
Main objective of the firing was to complete the final step in certifying the adequacy of the ammonium perchlorate fuel used. For the first time, this fuel was supplied by the new plant at Cedar City. Western Electrochemical Co.'s new plant was built to replace a facility in Henderson, Nevada, that was destroyed by explosion and fire in May 1988. The ammonium perchlorate is used in nearly all solid propellant rocket motors and is the ingredient that provides oxygen for the combustion. (Joseph Bauman, Deseret News, Aug 19, 1990 – edited)
August 17: “BRITISH WEATHER” AT THE CAPE – AND A TORNADO WARNING AT KSC
There’s a 50-50 chance that the weather will cooperate sufficiently for the McDonnell Douglas Space Systems Co. to launch a Delta II tonight, according to Air Force spokesman Ken Warren. The Delta’s payload is a British Satellite Broadcasting Marcopolo 2 satellite slotted for geosynchronous orbit. The BSB’s Director of Engineering and Operations, Ellis Griffith, said, “It’s rather a surprise to come to Florida and find we have British weather.”
Meanwhile, technicians at Kennedy Space Center evacuated Launch Pad 39A after meteorologists issued a tornado warning which lasted from 2:45 to 4:03 p.m. EDT today. “Everybody on the base was instructed to take shelter,” said KSC spokeswoman Lisa Malone. She added that no funnel cloud touched the ground and there was no apparent damage. (Banke, Florida Today, Aug. 17, 1990; Oates, The Orlando Sentinel, Aug. 17, 1990; Evans, Florida Today, Aug 18, 1990 – edited)
August 17: MARCOPOLO 2 OFF TO A GREAT START AFTER NIGHTTIME DELTA II LAUNCH SUCCESS
A Delta II rocket roared into space Friday night with a $100 million British television broadcasting satellite that will transmit programs directly to thousands of homes in the United Kingdom. The unmanned rocket lifted off at 8:42 p.m. EDT from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, nearly two hours late. The delay was caused by thunderstorms and last-minute problems with a computer used to display range data, which would have destroyed the launch vehicle if it had veered off course. The Air Force fixed the problem and the launch proceeded smoothly. “The vehicle is going right down the middle of the path, just the way we like to see it,” launch commentator Ray Adams said. The 1,450-pound satellite, called Marcopolo 2, separated from the booster as planned about 28 minutes into the flight. An on-board kick motor will circularize the 22,300-mile-high orbit on Sunday, August 19.
"One of the nice things about this launch is that it was not only successful, but the holds worked out for a night launch, which is always more spectacular," said former astronaut Charles "Pete" Conrad, now a vice president for McDonnell Douglas. The Delta launch was the 198th since 1960 for McDonnell Douglas and its 20 th consecutive successful lift-off.
“This nighttime launch of the Delta II was just spectacular and we are pleased that Marcopolo 2 is off to a great start,” said Hughes Aircraft Co. spokesman Emery Wilson. Hughes was the manufacturer of the Marcopolo and for this launch it had not only to build the satellite, but find insurance and procure the launch services; it marked the first time the company has had to accomplish all three tasks.
An identical spacecraft owned by British Satellite Broadcasting, Marcopolo 1, was launched aboard a Delta rocket August 27, 1989. It was the United States' first commercial launch of a payload into orbit; Friday's launch was the ninth. The cost of both Marcopolo satellites and launches is about $300 million. Marcopolo 2 eventually will be situated over the Atlantic Ocean near the first satellite. Each spacecraft has a lifetime of at least 10 years. Once Marcopolo 2 becomes fully operational in early December, it will enable British Satellite Broadcasting to transmit at full power over five transponder channels. Only one channel currently is beamed at full power; the other four are at half power. (Deseret News, Aug. 18, 1990; Banke, Florida Today, Aug. 18, 1990; Countdown, October 1990 – edited)
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#148 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:03
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August 18: LATEST DEVELOPMENTS IN PERSIAN GULF CRISIS
- U.S. Navy ships, the USS England, a guided-missile cruiser and the frigate USS Bradley intercepted two Iraqi vessels in the Persian Gulf on Friday but allowed them to proceed after determining they carried no goods. The ships were not boarded.
- The United Nations Security Council expressed concern over the fate of the Americans who have been detained since Iraq invaded Kuwait on Aug. 2, and asked the Secretary General to take all necessary steps to help. Fears for about three dozen Americans detained in Baghdad intensified Friday with word they had been moved to an undisclosed location. At the same time, a special Security Council committee met to discuss compliance with the international embargo intended to force Iraq to withdraw its troops from Kuwait and the Saudi border.
- In addition to the U.S. soldiers flooding the region, American naval and Air Force firepower is growing beyond the strictly defensive role that President Bush described
when he offered to protect Saudi Arabia. The clearest sign of a shift toward offensive capabilities was the departure Thursday from Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, of F-117A Stealth fighter-bombers. The F-117As are designed to penetrate heavily defended areas to attack vital targets.
- Defense Secretary Dick Cheney was heading for the Saudi capital of Riyadh to visit
American troops stationed in Saudi Arabia. The Pentagon said Thursday the cost of the U.S. military deployment until the end of September would be nearly $1.2 billion.
- A Pentagon spokesman said Iraq has pursued its armed forces buildup in Kuwait and its troops there now number about 160,000. The Iraqis have ringed Kuwait city with an air defense system, a U.S. official reported.
(Deseret News, Aug. 18, 1990 – edited)
August 20: IRAQ POSITIONS `HUMAN SHIELDS'
President Bush demanded Monday that Iraq release all foreigners detained in Iraq and Kuwait, saying "whatever these innocent citizens are called, they are in fact hostages." For the first time, Bush dropped the administration's effort to avoid use of the term hostage to describe the 3,000 Americans and other foreign nationals now under Iraqi control. Bush told the National Convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars that the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait on August 2 was "a ruthless assault" on international order, and said no one should underestimate the determination of the United States to defend its friends.
The President said the internment of innocent foreign civilians is another assault on the norms of civilized conduct. "In moving foreign citizens against their will you are violating the norms of your own religion," Bush told Iraq. "Release all foreigners now," he demanded, "give them the right to come and go as they wish."
For a second time since leaving August 10 for what was to have been a 25-day stay in Maine, Bush made an overnight trip to Washington to consult his top advisers on the dangerous war of nerves under way in and around the Persian Gulf. It was not just crisis but convenience that prompted Bush to interrupt his vacation for what an aide characterized as "a status review meeting" over dinner Sunday, August 19, with his national security advisers.
White House press secretary Marlin Fitzwater said a fresh Iraqi offer to free foreigners in exchange for a U.S. withdrawal and an end to the trade embargo against Iraq "doesn't improve the prospects for resolving the crisis. It seems we're getting a daily seminar of Iraqi ridicule these days," he said. "This one didn't have much relationship at all to our objective."
Bush held meetings Monday morning on the energy and economic implications of the gulf crisis before his appearance before the VFW. During a visit to the Pentagon last Wednesday for an update on the biggest American military operation since the Vietnam War, Bush declared that "our jobs, our way of life, our own freedom and the freedom of friendly countries around the world" were all at stake in the U.S.-led effort to roll back Iraq's aggression against Kuwait.
In the two weeks since Iraqi forces overran Kuwait, Bush has enjoyed strong domestic and international support for his moves against Iraq. But two key Democrats in Congress warned Sunday that he must not risk that backing by being seen as acting too precipitous or with insufficient provocation. House Armed Services Committee Chairman Les Aspin, D-Wisconsin, and Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Indiana, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Middle East, said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Bush must be careful not to get ahead of events or world opinion in stepping up the military pressure on Iraq.
While Bush has broad public support for his actions to date, Aspin and Hamilton both
warned that has been accompanied by unease and anxiety brought on by a huge military buildup soon to include the first mobilization of reserves in 20 years. The question left unanswered as Bush flew to Washington from Kennebunkport on Sunday was not whether the reservists would be called up - that decision was made Friday, August 17, before Defense Secretary Dick Cheney left for Saudi Arabia - but how many would be asked to support and in some instances fill in for the tens of thousands of soldiers, sailors and airmen already in or headed for the Middle East. The reserves were last mobilized in 1970 to help out during a postal strike. They were last called up for combat in January 1968, during the Tet offensive in the Vietnam War.
Once back in Maine, Bush was fully expected to resume his vacation regimen of golf and fishing while maintaining close contact with officials in Washington. The intent has been to make very clear that despite the gravity of the crisis, Bush does not feel held hostage to the uncertain designs of Saddam or other events over which he may have little or no control. Besides, said Fitzwater, "the President feels that vacation is very helpful to his physical and mental well-being. He carries the work of the White House wherever he goes," he said, "and it's important for the American people to see that he's not holed up in the White House."
Radios crackled Monday with the sound of U.S. warships challenging almost every commercial vessel in the southern Persian Gulf, shipping executives reported.But at midday, there were no Iraqi vessels in the area."Even the two Iraqi freighters that were anchored there for days are no longer around," said one of the executives, referring to the Al-Abid and Al-Baya. The shipping executives said they believed that Baghdad ordered Iraqi ships away while U.S. Defense Secretary Dick Cheney was in the gulf area. Two Iraqi freighters last week were refused entry by United Arab Emirates ports on the gulf, while two Iraqi tankers were refused entry by Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea, on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula. The four vessels were anchored in international waters off both coasts.
IN OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
- The five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council debated Monday the text of a resolution that would allow a multinational force in the Persian Gulf to enforce economic sanctions against Iraq. The discussions, which began Saturday, are being held in secret informal meetings. Diplomatic sources said an agreement was being delayed because China had reservations about using military force to stop, and possibly attack, suspicious Iraqi cargo ships and tankers. The United States has announced it will unilaterally enforce the economic embargo, imposed by the United Nations against Iraq and Kuwait the week after Iraq's August 2 invasion of the tiny emirate. Other countries, including the Soviet Union, have indicated they, too, are ready to enforce the U.N. embargo, but only if the United Nations calls on them to do so.
- Two Dutch Navy frigates left for the Persian Gulf Monday to join the multinational force. The air defense frigate Witte de With and the standard frigate Pieter Florisz were to take two weeks to reach the region. Greece also said it would send a frigate.
- A second squadron of radar-elusive F-117A Stealth fighters is on its way to Saudi Arabia as part of the U.S. mobilization. The first squadron of 22 planes was dispatched to Turkey six weeks ago in advance of the crisis, and the second squadron of 22 aircraft left Monday afternoon on the 12- to 15-hour flight to Saudi Arabia.
- Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal arrived in Damascus, Syria, Monday to discuss the Gulf crisis with the Syrian leadership.
- Iranian newspapers Monday attacked the U.S. military presence in Saudi Arabia. The Jomhuri Islami said in an editorial the United States had virtually annexed Saudi Arabia, just as Iraq did Kuwait. But the newspaper stressed that although it opposes the U.S. military presence, it also opposes the Iraqi takeover of Kuwait.
- OPEC said Monday there was not enough support among its members to call an emergency meeting to consider Saudi Arabia's request to boost oil production by 2 million barrels a day. OPEC's president said he would meet with other oil ministers before the end of the month.
(Deseret News, Aug. 20, 1990 – edited)
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#149 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:04
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#150 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:06
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#151 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:07
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#152 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:08
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#153 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:10
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#154 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:10
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#155 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:11
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#156 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:12
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#157 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:13
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#158 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:14
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#159 by Ares67 on 15 Dec, 2016 23:15
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