[A-List] UK military: stranded in Kuwait

["Michael Keaney" <michael.keaney@xxxxxx>]

Helicopter pilots stranded by sandstorm
Fleet immobilised by high winds and choking clouds, writes TIM BUTCHER and
GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN
The Herald, 14 March 2003

A MASSIVE sandstorm left 10 Royal Navy helicopter pilots stranded in the
Kuwait desert overnight yesterday and grounded most of the force's fleet for
12 hours.

Winds of 40mph whipped up sand clouds that brought visibility down to almost
zero in just minutes. Flying blind, the two-man crews at the controls of
five Sea Kings from HMS Ocean were forced to land where they were, with one
going down beside a motorway.

The storm was so strong it left a fine coat of sand over the decks of Royal
Navy warships at sea in the Arabian Gulf. It was the biggest storm troops
had seen since they began to arrive in the theatre of operations in January.

Its ferocity raised observers' fears that any coalition attack could be
drastically hindered if a sudden and unexpected sandstorm blew up in the
first crucial 48 hours.

Soldiers at camps near the Iraqi border were also lashed by the sand, which
left many choking and complaining of sore eyes and throats.

The stranded chopper pilots from 845 naval air squadron, based at Yeovilton,
Somerset, slept in hammocks in the back of their helicopters. They had been
on a night-flying exercise.

A Sea King pilot from HMS Ocean said: "The storm literally whipped up from
nothing in three minutes and there was nothing they could do. I've never
seen the flight deck in such a bad state.

"None of the crew was in any danger. They carry a sleeping bag and rations
at all times when they fly for contingencies just like this."

The HMS Ocean pilot added: "The weather will certainly be an important
factor in our operations. But we have good forecasters who should be able to
predict most things."

On board HMS Ocean yesterday, crews worked tirelessly to clean the sand from
their fleet of 22 helicopters. It took hours to return the 22,000-tonne
helicopter carrier's flight deck to its normal grey appearance from the
light brown colour left by the desert residue.

Another navy helicopter pilot from HMS Ark Royal was forced to make an
emergency landing on a US warship because he could not reach his own ship.

Commander Charlie Wilson, heading the British-led anti-mine operation in the
Gulf, said: "All maritime operations are susceptible to weather,
particularly those that are more delicate.

"The weather out here can be bloody horrible and we have had to delay some
training. If we were to have these conditions in wartime, it would slow up
the mine-hunting operation."

British forces stationed near the Iraqi border said they were ready for
battle and waiting for final authorisation from the government to join the
US forces massing in the region.

Previous reports of equipment failures and dissatisfaction among the British
soldiers were being dismissed by commanders on the ground, who said their
men were now in a position to launch an attack whenever politicians give the
order.

According to Lieutenant Colonel Nick Mercer, senior legal adviser to UK 1st
Armoured Division, the rules of engagement for British troops, which set out
the circumstances in which armed force may be used for the furtherance of UK
government policy, were considered by the attorney general on Friday before
being passed through to the cabinet on Monday.

He said British commanders in Kuwait were expecting to receive authorisation
for action within days.

Mercer said authorisation was expected to be permissive - normal for a
war-time situation - and would allow troops to engage in most types of
action, rather than restrictive, which would limit their options.

Thousands of British troops are camped out in the desert south of the
Kuwaiti border with Iraq, some as close as 16 miles from the frontier.

The 7th Armoured Brigade, better known as the Desert Rats, are the furthest
forward of the British troops, with their Challenger tanks, Warrior armoured
vehicles, and CVR(T) reconnaissance vehicles parked up under camouflage
netting in the vast camp of more than 6000 men and women near the border.

* This is a pooled report by Tim Butcher of the Daily Telegraph in the
desert south of the Iraqi border and Gethin Chamberlain of the Scotsman with
the Black Watch in Kuwait