Operation Desert Shield

Department of Defense Photo Essay

  • F-15C Eagle aircraft armed with AIM-7 Sparrow and AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles deploy to Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield. The aircraft are assigned to the 36th Tactical Fighter Wing. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Fernando Serna
  • U.S. Army soldiers of the 21st Brigade prepare to board a commercial 747 aircraft at Hunter Army Airfield for deployment to the Middle East in support of Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Marvin Preston
  • A 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) company marches across the apron to board aircraft that will carry the unit to Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Renee L. Sitler
  • U.S. Army Pfc. Edward Bessette hands a 105mm round up to Spec. Scott Arnold as soldiers of 1st Battalion, 64th Armor, 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized) load ammunition aboard their M-1 Abrams tanks prior to deployment to Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by George D. Proctor
  • U.S. Marines watch from a pier as the dock landing ship USS Pensacola is assisted by a tug. Elements of the 2nd Marine Division embarked aboard the Pensacola and other ships to participate in Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. R.L. Jaggard
  • U.S. Marines prepare their LAV-25 light armored vehicles aboard Navy ships in preparation for shipment to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield.. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. R.L. Jaggard
  • An aircraft maintenance crew member removes the blades from an AH-64 Apache helicopter in preparation for its shipment to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Dobert A. Baily
  • A workman uses a forklift to move a pallet of Mark 84 2,000-lb. bombs, part of an ordnance shipment bound for the Middle East in support of Operation Desert Shield. DoD photo
  • U.S. airman watch as 48th Tactical Fighter Wing F-111F aircraft prepare to depart for Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield. DoD photo
  • An F-4G Wild Weasel aircraft, foreground, and an F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft are serviced on the flight line prior to departing for Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech Sgt. Fernando Serna
  • F-111F aircraft of the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing taxi to the flight line as they prepare to depart for Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield. The lead F-111F is equipped with GBU-15 glide bombs on the inboard wing pylons and laser-guided bombs on the outboard pylons. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. David Nolan
  • A gunner in a Helicopter Anti-submarine Squadron 5 SH-3H Sea King helicopter mans an M-60 machine gun as the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower transits the Suez Canal below following a deployment in support of Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Frank A. Marquart
  • The fleet oiler USS Neosho transits the Suez Canal as it travels to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Frank A. Marquart
  • A tent city provides shelter for members of the 401st Tactical Fighter Wing during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Chief Master Sgt. Don Sutherland
  • U.S. military personnel arrive at a base camp during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lee Corkran
  • U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. James Goffard and Saudi Arabian Army Chief Warrant Officer Ali Abdulaziz Al-Hamdan pose for a photograph at a desert base camp. The Saudi Arabian veteran soldier assists military efforts by acting as a liaison between American and Saudi forces during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Chief Master Sgt. Don Sutherland
  • Four soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division walk around their camp wearing rain suits, gloves and M-17A1 protective masks as they try to acclimate their bodies to the heat of the Saudi summer during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. F. Lee Corkran
  • U.S. Air Force Capt. James Dygert checks a propeller of a UH-60A Blackhawk helicopter during Operation Desert Shield. Dygert is on interservice assignment as executive officer for Company B, 2nd Battalion, 82nd Aviation Brigade. and is responsible for transporting troops to the front. U.S. Air Force photo by Chief Master Sgt. Don Sutherland
  • A U.S. Air Force aerospace audiovisual service videographer holds her Sony Hi-8 camera in the backseat of an F-4 Phantom prior to a flight during Operation Desert Shield. DoD photo
  • U.S. Army Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaks via satellite to the Pentagon while visiting troops during Operation Desert Shield. DoD photo
  • U.S. Army Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, sits in a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter with 82nd Airborne personnel as he prepares for takeoff. Powell visited the base camp during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Rodney Kerns
  • Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division wear their M-17A1 protective masks while conducting training during Operation Desert Shield. Several M-551 Sheridan light tanks are in the background. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Bill Thompson
  • U.S. Army soldiers assigned to the 101st Airborne Division's Company A, 3rd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, use an abandoned town to stage an urban warfare training exercise during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Spec. Samuel Henry
  • U.S. Army soldiers assigned to the 101st Airborne Division's Company A, 3rd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment take part in an urban warfare training exercise in an abandoned town during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Spec. Samuel Henry
  • A U.S. Marine armored vehicle crewman wears a nuclear-biological-chemical protective mask while taking part in NBC training during Operation Desert Shield. DoD photo
  • Pallets and containers of equipment sit in a logistics support area during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. F. Lee Cockran
  • Camouflage netting covers a cargo truck at a newly constructed MIM-104 Patriot tactical air defense system site during Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Bill Thompson
  • Members of the U.S. Marine detachment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Independence exercise on the flight deck in front of an F/A-18C Hornet aircraft during a break in Desert Shield flight operations. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Scott Allen
  • Airfield operations personnel record the arrival and departure of aircraft during Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. F. Lee Corkran
  • A U.S. Army soldier begins a preflight check on a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter during Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Rodney M. Kern
  • A left front view of a U.S. Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter in flight during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Brian Cumper
  • Wearing an MCU-2P protective mask as part of a Nuclear-Biological-Chemical warfare drill, a U.S. Navy aviation boatswain's mate refuels an F-14A Tomcat aircraft on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy in support of Desert Shield. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Moore
  • A Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter lifts an M998 High-Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) from the deck of an amphibious ship during exercise Imminent Thunder, a readiness exercise conducted by forces operating in the Persian Gulf region in support of Desert Shield. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Scott Allen
  • U.S. sailors and Marines aboard the aircraft carrier USS Midway listen to an address by Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Frank B. Kelso II, during a deployment in the Persian Gulf region in support of Desert Shield. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Scott M. Allen
  • A sailor transfers to a ship from a UH-46 Sea Knight helicopter of Helicopter Combat Support Squadron 11, attached to the ammunition ship USS Flint, during Desert Shield. U.S. Navy photo
  • Two F/A-18C Hornet aircraft of Strike Fighter Squadron 74 fly above the Forrestal class, aircraft carrier USS Saratoga making a hard turn to starboard during Desert Shield. DoD photo
  • U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. George Wagasky of the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing scans the horizon from the cockpit of his F-15D Eagle aircraft while on a combat patrol near the Iraqi border during Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Chief Master Sgt. Don Sutherland
  • U.S. military personnel arrive at Dhahran International Airport aboard a 433rd Military Airlift Wing C-5A Galaxy aircraft during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. F. Lee Cockran
  • An ammunition specialist carries a 105mm armor-piercing, discarding sabot round, to be used in an M-1 Abrams main battle tank, during Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Brian Cumper
  • A U.S. Army soldier assigned to the 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, prepares to load a 105mm shell into an M-102 towed howitzer during a heavy artillery barrage demonstration for Saudi Arabian national guardsmen during Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Spec. Samuel Henry
  • An OH-58D Kiowa helicopter departs from a communications site in the desert during Desert Shield. DoD photo
  • An aerial view of a billeting area at the First Marine Expeditionary Force base camp during Desert Shield. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. J. R. Ruark
  • A soldier armed with an M-16A2 rifle keeps watch from the open door of a UH-60A Black Hawk helicopter on patrol over the desert during Operation Desert Shield. DoD Photo
  • U.S. Marine Cpl. Robert C. Unhoch, surveys the area after arriving at his mission location during Exercise Imminent Thunder, part of Operation Desert Shield. Unhoch is assigned to the 2nd Marine Division's Charlie Company, 1st Battalion. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. H. H. Deffner
  • U.S. Marines assigned to the 2nd Marine Division's Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, move out on a mission after disembarking from a CH-46E Sea Knight helicopter during Exercise Imminent Thunder, part of Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. H. H. Deffner
  • A Marine CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopter lowers an M998 High-Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle to the ground during Exercise Imminent Thunder, part of Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Hans Deffner
  • U.S. Army soldiers assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division's 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, take a water break while conducting machine gun drills during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. F. Lee Cockran
  • U.S. Navy aviation ordnancemen inspect an AIM-54C Phoenix missile on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga during Operation Desert Shield. An attack Squadron 35 A-6E Intruder aircraft is behind them. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Chief Warrant Officer 2 Ed Bailey
  • A 552nd Airborne Warning and Control Wing E-3 Sentry aircraft flies over the desert during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Chief Master Sgt. Don Sutherland
  • Three soldiers from the United Arab Emirates are silhouetted against the afternoon sky as they sit behind an M-2 .50-caliber machine gun atop an armored vehicle parked on the perimeter of an air base during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Marvin Lynchard
  • A U.S. serviceman works into the night inside a camouflaged shelter during Operation Desert Shield. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Perry Heimer