On several missions, F-117 pilots saw spectacular explosions in the distance, with some being so impressive that they resembled a nuclear mushroom cloud.
The result of the USAF’s Have Blue program, which started in the mid-1970s, Lockheed’s renowned Advanced Development Company created the F-117. The first of 59 production aircraft, equipped with stealth technology that rendered the jet nearly undetectable to radar, was delivered to the USAF in August 1982.
Midway through 1990, the USAF received the last Nighthawk, and in reaction to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait, the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW) mass-deployed to Saudi Arabia as part of Operation Desert Shield. Later, in January 1991, F-117s took part in the first airstrikes of Operation Desert Storm (ODS).
F-117 pilots witnessed incredible explosions in the distance on numerous sorties during ODS; some of these explosions were so powerful that they resembled a mushroom cloud of nuclear bombs. During the war, there were, of course, no nuclear explosions, but certain targets that were struck produced enormous secondary detonations.
By late January 1991, the F-117s were chasing ammo dumps, chemical storage facilities, and bunkers around the nation after the major targets in Baghdad had been eliminated. Lt Col Barry E. Home described one of these flights in his book F-117 Stealth Fighter Units of Operation Desert Storm; he flew aircraft 85-0818 The Overachiever;
“It was a two-target mission and confirmed ammunition bunker was my objective with my first bomb. The second one was destined for a chemical bunker. The ammunition dump was in central Iraq, 100 miles west of Baghdad. The second was just north of the Iraqi capital. I was flying at what we considered to be medium altitude, my jet being armed with GBU-27s. The ammunition dump was in a vast array of uniformly placed bunkers in flat, open areas. Several had already been hit, but others remained intact. It was actually a double bunker configuration.
“I approached from south to north and used only one weapon. Right after release, I detected that the thumb tracker was overly sensitive. That caused me considerable difficulty late in the delivery. At one point, the tracker caused the sight line to move, or rather jump, approximately 100 feet south of the target. I regained control and managed to steer the weapon to final impact. The bomb hit precisely in the middle of the double bunker, striking the wall that separated them. The explosion was absolutely brilliant. It seemed to engulf the sky all around me. For a moment, I was afraid that it might even reach up and grab me.”
Lt. Col. Home continued to his second target, scoring another direct hit. He had no more issues with his tracker after that. That was when he left the area, returning to the border. He noticed a bright orange glow to the west, pointing toward his first target; the flames had barely reduced 20 minutes after the first explosion.
After Home got back to base, wing munitions experts and intelligence personnel saw the tape and said it was the biggest explosion they had ever seen. The combined weight of both bunkers’ explosives was estimated to have exceeded one million pounds. Later, several F-117 pilots operating in that area reported witnessing the fireworks and being mystified about their origin. Home did not notice the crater he assumed his attack had produced since he did not make any more sorties in that area.
F-117 Stealth Fighter Units of Operation Desert Storm is published by Osprey Publishing and is available to order here.
Photo by U.S. Air Force and Federal Emergency Management Agency
