[A-List] US military: friendly fire concerns

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

Signal sought to prevent friendly fire
IAN BRUCE
The Herald, 4 June 2003

THE Pentagon must redouble its efforts to field an affordable electronic
identification system for tanks and other vehicles to reduce friendly fire
incidents, according to the senior US Marine commander in Iraq.

At least five British and seven US servicemen were killed in fratricidal
attacks by coalition aircraft, tanks, or missiles during the campaign to
topple Saddam Hussein in March and April. Many more were wounded in "blue on
blue" accidents which could have been prevented and which accounted for
almost one-quarter of US casualties.

Lieutenant General James Conway, who commanded the Marine Corps forces which
stormed 300 miles north from Kuwait to capture Baghdad, said the incidence
of allied deaths caused by allied weapons was "probably my biggest
disappointment of the war" and that it was "something we really have to
stop".

He added: "What we truly need is something that can identify a friendly
vehicle. It should squawk or beep or emit some sort of power source that
tells the shooter, be it a tank or an aircraft, that it is looking at a
friendly piece of equipment.

"Our weapons are now so accurate and so deadly that when one of them leaves
the rail or launches from its tube, it is probably going to kill something.
With that in mind, you've got to make certain what you're shooting at is the
enemy."

In the worst incident, a pair of US jets bombed a convoy of US special
forces and Kurdish peshmerga militia in northern Iraq, killing 19 Kurds and
wounding three US troopers.

A US A10 "tankbuster" aircraft killed two British Challenger crewmen, even
though the UK soldiers were waving at the pilot and showing fluorescent
recognition panels.

The US has developed an electronic system known as BCIS to solve the problem
of identification on confused battlefields. The catch is that it costs more
than £35,000 to equip a single tank or truck.

Pete Glikerdas, a civilian engineer who heads combat identification projects
for the US Army, said: "The best tools for prevention of friendly fire
tragedies are global positioning systems and ingrained training and tactics.
It's doubtful if there will ever be a completely foolproof system."

In central Iraq yesterday, American soldier was shot dead while on patrol
near the town of Balad, 55 miles north of Baghdad, the capital.

Several dozen Americans have been killed or wounded in hit-and-run attacks
since combat ended two months ago.

Meanwhile, the US military said four American soldiers and five civilians
were blindfolded and interrogated by Iranian authorities after being taken
off boats in the waters between Iran and Iraq on Sunday.

The soldiers had been going to pick up Iraqis working on an oil platform in
the Shatt al-Arab waterway. None of the captives was injured, but they were
held overnight.