First three aircraft losses, two of which involved helicopters, result in 21 deaths
The first three aircraft losses of the war were accidents resulting in 21 fatalities and raising the spectre of mishaps causing more casualties than enemy action.
Two helicopter accidents accounted for most fatalities. A US Marine Corps Boeing CH-46D Sea Knight crashed while carrying eight Royal Marines and four USMC crew. Two days later two Royal Navy Westland Sea King AEW7 airborne early warning helicopters collided over the Gulf near HMS Ark Royal, killing all seven on board.
In the first friendly fire incident, a Royal Air Force Panavia Tornado GR4 was shot down by a US Patriot surface-to air-missile (SAM) while returning from a strike mission over Iraq, raising questions about the IFF capability of the Raytheon Patriot surface-to-air missile system.
According to reports from the Tornado's base, the aircraft was approaching the Kuwaiti border as number two in a two-ship formation when it was identified by the Patriot as an anti-radiation missile. An operator then initiated an engagement, before realising that other sensor data did not corroborate the target classification.
Further doubts were raised about Patriot's IFF system when a day later a second SAM battery, 55km (35 miles) south of An Najaf, locked on to a US Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16. The fighter fired a Raytheon AGM-88 HARM, destroying the battery's radar without killing anyone on the ground. Patriot, and in particular the new Lockheed Martin PAC-3 missile, has proved a success against Iraqi surface-to-surface missiles, intercepting eight Ababil-100s and Al Samouds fired at Kuwait.
Initial indications are that the Tornado was in the "safe-lane" at the right speed and height when it was hit. If it had an IFF problem, even not functioning or broadcasting the wrong identification tag, it would probably still have been spotted by the airborne control post. The missile was seen by the lead aircraft, which called a warning, flew evasive manoeuvres and fired countermeasures, assuming the missile was Iraqi.
Source: Flight International
