1991 Persian Gulf War

Sources

by David Nilsen and Greg Novak

Notes

This is round three of GDW's study of the Gulf War. The first round consists of the Desert Shield and Gulf War Fact Books by Frank Chadwick (the second with Matt Caffrey). The second round, approximately two years later, was Phase Line Smash, which concentrated on the heavy land forces and focused the level of detail down to battalions. We now return to an attempt to define, in game terms, virtually every unit that was in the theater, on an insanely demanding level of detail. Even three years later, this exercise is massive, time-consuming, and uncertain (not to mention brain-damaging). In other words, don't be surprised to see "take four" someday (this particularly applies to the Arab OBs, whose owners are still surprisingly tight-lipped). Greg Novak assembled this document's framework in Command Decision terms, and I basically completely disassembled it, spilled it all over the floor, proofed it, updated it, changed it all around, doubled its length, and then put it back together again based on my additional year's research since PLS. This is a state-of-the-art (March 1994) assessment of the forces of the Gulf War: You will not find all of this disparate material in one document anywhere else in this entire world (but if you can, boy did I waste a lot of time). Where this OB disagrees with Phase Line Smash or either of the Fact Books, this is the more definitive.

The information above is based on research done for the GDW products Phase Line Smash, Troubled Waters, Gulf War Fact Book, and Desert Shield Fact Book, plus extensive work done since those products were "finished" (nothing worth doing ever is). See the bibliographies of those products for sources used, as they are far too numerous to list again here in their entirety. Only sources used extensively again for this work and new sources available since those bibliographies are listed here:

Published (or soon-to-be published) Material

Allen, Patrick H. F. Screaming Eagles: In Action with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). Mallard Press (New York: 1990).
Armee de Terre. Guerre du Golfe: L'Armee de Terre Franraise au Combat. Editions Lincoln (Paris).
Bergquist, MAJ Ronald E. The Role of Airpower in the Iran-Iraq War. Air University Press (Maxwell AFB, Alabama: 1988).
de la Billiere, General Sir Peter. Storm Command: A Personal Account of the Gulf War. HarperCollins Publishers (London: 1993).
Blake, Thomas G. The Shield and the Storm. The Commemorative Group (Point Pleasant, New Jersey).
Bohannon, 2LT Richard M. "Dragon's Roar: 1-37 Armor in the Battle of 73 Easting." Armor, May-June 1992.
Caraccilo, Dominic J. The Ready Brigade of the 82nd Airborne in Desert Storm. McFarland & Company, Inc. (Jefferson, North Carolina: 1993)
Carhart, Tom. Iron Soldiers. Pocket Books (New York: 1994).
Constantine, CAPT Donald. "Sappers Forward: Preparing Engineers for Desert Storm." Military Review, March 1992.
Cordesman, Anthony H. The Iran-Iraq War and Western Security, 1984-87: Strategic Implications and Policy Options. Jane's Publishing Company Limited (London: 1987).
Cureton, LTC Charles H. US Marines in the Persian Gulf, 19901991: With the 1st Marine Division in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, US Marine Corps (Washington: 1993).
Debay, Yves, and James Hill. US Marine Corps Helicopters. Concord Publications Company (Hong Kong: 1993).
Dietrich, LTC Steve E. "In-Theater Armored Force Modernization." Military Review, October, 1993.
Downer, BG Lee A., USAF. "The Composite Wing in Combat." Airpower Journal, Winter 1991.
Drendel, Lou. Air War-Desert Storm. Squadron/Signal Publications (Carrollton, Texas: 1991).
Editors of Army. "The Soldier Armed: M9 Armored Combat Earthmover (ACE)." Army, August 1991.
Flanagan, LTG E. M., Jr. "Special Operations: Hostile Territory was their AO in Desert Storm." Army, September 1991.
Fontenot, COL Gregory. "Fright Night: Task Force 2/34 Armor." Military Review, January 1993.
Foss, Christopher F. Jane's AFV Recognition Handbook, Second Edition. Jane's Information Group Inc. (Alexandria, Virginia: 1992).
Freedman, Lawrence, and Efraim Karsh. The Gulf Conflict 19901991: Diplomacy and War in the New World Order. Princeton University Press (Princeton, New Jersey: 1993).
Green, Michael. US Airpower in Desert Storm. Concord Publications Company (Hong Kong: 1991).
Griswold, Terry, and D. M. Giangreco. Delta: America's Elite Counterterrorist Force. Motorbooks International (Osceola, Wisconsin: 1992).
Halberstadt, Hans. Desert Rats: The British 4 and 7 Armoured Brigades, WW II to Today. Motorbooks International (Osceola, Wisconsin: 1993).
Hallion, Richard P. Storm over Iraq: Air Power and the Gulf War. Smithsonian Institution Press (Washington and London: 1992).
Jupa, Richard, and Jim Dingeman. Gulf Wars. 3W Publications (Cambria, California: 1991).
Katz, Samuel M. US Navy SEALS: America's Toughest Commandos. Concord Publications Company (Hong Kong: 1993).
Kinzey, Bert. The Fury of Desert Storm: The Air Campaign. Tab Books (Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania: 1991).
Kinzey, Bert. US Aircraft & Armament of Operation Desert Storm (Detail & Scale Vol. 40). Kalmbach Publishing Company (Waukesha, Wisconsin: 1993).
Lacquemont, CAPT Richard A., CAPT Joseph V. Pacileo, and CAPT Paul A. F. Gallo. "Targeting During Desert Stone." Field Artillery, February 1992.
Melson, MAJ Charles D., Evelyn A. Englander, CAPT David A. Dawson. US Marines in the Persian Gulf, 1990-1991: Anthology and Annotated Bibliography. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, US Marine Corps (Washington: 1992).
Micheletti, Eric. After the Storm: Iraqi Wrecks and Fortifications. Concord Publications Company (Hong Kong: 1992).
Micheletti, Eric. Operation Daguet: French Air Force in the Gulf War. Concord Publications Company (Hong Kong: 1991).
Moore, Molly. A Woman at War: Storming Kuwait with the US Marines. Charles Scribner's Sons (New York: 1993).
Morse, Stan, Editor. Gulf Air War Debrief. Aerospace Publishing, Ltd. (London: 1991)
Mroczkowski, LTC Dennis P. US Marines in the Persian Gulf, 1990-1991: With the 2d Marine Division in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, US Marine Corps (Washington: 1993).
Nagl, 1LT (P) John A. "A Tale of Two Battles." Armor, May-June 1992.
Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Research, Development, and Acquisition). Weapon Systems. US Government Printing Office (Washington: 1992).
Pearce, Nigel. The Shield and the Sabre: The Desert Rats in the Gulf 1990-91. Her Majesty's Stationery Office (London: 1992).
Pickett, Paul. H-60 Black Hawk in Action. Squadron/Signal Publications (Carrollton, Texas: 1993).
Pimlott, John, and Stephen Badsey, editors. The Gulf War Assessed. Arms and Armour Press (London: 1992).
Polmar, Norman. Ships and Aircraft of the US Fleet, Fifteenth Edition. Naval Institute Press (Annapolis: 1993).
Record, Jeffrey. Hollow Victory: A Contrary View of the Gulf War. Brassey's (US) Inc. (Washington, New York, London: 1993)
Rottman, Gordon. US Army Airborne 1940-1990 (Osprey Elite No. 31). Osprey Publishing Ltd (London: 1990).
Smallwood, William L. Warthog: Flying the A-10 in the Gulf War. Brassey's (US) Inc. (Washington, New York, London: 1993).
Smith, Barry D. 101st Airborne Division in Colour Photographs (Europa Militaria No. 13). Windrow & Greene Ltd. (London: 1993)
Swain, COL Richard M. Lucky War: Third Army in Desert Storm. To be published by US Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
Tien, CAPT John K. "The Future Scout Vehicle: A Desert Storm Endorsement." Armor, March-April 1993.
Waller, Douglas C. The Commandos: The Inside Story of America's Secret Soldiers. Simon & Schuster (New York: 1994).
Walker, Greg. At the Hurricane's Eye: US Special Operations Forces from Vietnam to Desert Storm. Ivy Books (New York: 1994).
Warford, CAPT James M. "The Tanks of Babylon: Main Battle Tanks of the Iraqi Army." Armor, November-December 1990.
Zaloga, Steve. M1 Abrams Main Battle Tank 1982-1992 (New Vanguard No. 2). Osprey Publishing, Ltd. (London: 1993)
Zaloga, Steve. T-54, T-55, T-62. Concord Publications Company (Hong Kong: 1992).

Reports and other papers


Innumerable papers and AARs from the 3d Armored Division, 24th Infantry Division, and 82d and 101st Airborne Divisions
1st Brigade "America's Team", 1st Infantry Division, Desert Shield/ Storm History.
Headquarters, 2d Squadron, 2d ACR, "Memorandum for Record: Historical Narrative of 2d Squadron, 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment's Role in the Campaign to Liberate Kuwait, 20 February-7 April 1991."
2d Armored Cavalry Regiment report, "Operation Desert Storm 1990-1991."
Headquarters, 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry, "The History of the Fourth United States Cavalry"
VII Public Affairs Office, The Desert Jayhawk, Stuttgart, Germany, 1991.
Department of Defense, Conduct of the Persian Gulf War, Final Report to Congress (the "Title V Report"), Washington, DC, April 1992
"Desert Storm Ships Return." United States Navy News, Release No. 023, April 5, 1991.

Thanks also to:


Dr. John Purdy, Patton Museum of Cavalry and Armor, Fort Knox,
Dr. Burton Wright III, US Army Aviation Branch History Office, Fort Rucker,
LT Edward Kroszkewicz (101st Airborne Division Historian) at the Don F. Pratt Museum, Fort Campbell,
Robert Anzuoni, Curator of the 82d Airborne Division War Memorial Museum, Fort Bragg, and
Steve Zaloga and Steve Rothwell.

And of course, to numerous US Army officers and enlisted personnel who generously offered me their time. The US government has this funny idea that game designers are strange unscrupulous greedheads, whereas book writers and the press are Seekers After The Truth. In practical terms, what this means is that Army officers are really not supposed to help game designers do research, as this would constitute "commercial favoritism," as if Houghton Mifflin and the Washington Post were charities. (I don't write the laws, I just have them quoted at me by various Judge Advocates General.) Therefore, some of the finest human beings with whom you would ever wish to share oxygen are credited here anonymously, because there is no point in having JAGs pissing in their cornflakes just because they were kind enough to help out with this research. Better safe than making someone else sorry.

Herewith, one multiple anonymous credit, to whit: God bless the US Army and Marine Corps, their officers and enlisted personnel, especially those of you at Forts Knox, Monroe, Leavenworth, Bliss, Sill, McPherson, Gillem, and Leonard Wood Headquarters Marine Corps, and Camp Lejeune. If the rest of the world lived up to your standards of decency and professionalism, you'd all be out of a job.

1991 Persian Gulf War Supplement Part 2

Back to Table of Contents -- Command Post Quarterly # 5
To Command Post Quarterly List of Issues
To MagWeb Master Magazine List
© Copyright 1994 by Greg Novak.
This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com