As darkness fell over the Arabian Peninsula on January 29, 1991, the ground trembled with the onset of Iraq’s most ruthless offensive of the Persian Gulf War. High above, aboard a modified Boeing 707 with state-of-the-art surveillance systems, the E-8 Joint STARS crew was vigilant.
Their screens flickered with the movement of a massive Iraqi armor convoy advancing towards Khafji, marking Saddam Hussein’s forceful bid to shift the war’s momentum.
With the APY-7 radar detecting enemy movements from over 250 kilometers away, the crew of 21 specialists rapidly processed data and began coordinating the battlefield below. This high-altitude vantage point allowed them to direct coalition air strikes and ground movements with unprecedented precision, tracking up to 600 targets simultaneously from over 30,000 feet above the battle zone.
As the enemy armor clashed with the US Marines and other Coalition troops throughout the night, the E-8 Joint STARS orchestrated a critical defense, managing complex operations across thousands of square miles.
With new threats emerging every second, the E-8 aircraft became the combined arms center of all the allied troops, the eyes in the sky for all the men on the ground. While monitoring the offensive, the crew abruptly detected a fresh wave of enemy armor heading straight into an outpost with US Marines to crush them.
Lacking proper anti-armor weaponry, the leathernecks began to fall back in order while the E-8, always vigilant, coordinated a series of artillery and air strikes to halt the Iraqi’s advance. Bomb after bomb led to more casualties, leading to an abrupt stop from the enemy column.
Saddam’s men looked at the sky and wondered how the enemy was detecting them with such accuracy in the middle of the night. Hell was falling from the sky.
And there was more to come. The battle for Khafji was not over yet, and the E-8’s screens were still flickering with thousands of enemies.
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Watching your content is a true journey into the world of magic. Thanks for the expedition!🦾 1 🟤!
The Hellion – Electric Eye :- Judas Priest 👍🙃🍺🦘
Thank you for your hard work and effort. Your videos are a true work of art.⛹️🦇😀
Why scrap them, they would have found a long list of willing buyers overseas.
Welcome to Dark Skies. For when you feel the need for 8,000 words to describe something that could otherwise be done in 500 or less.
Love your videos
These videos are great and easy on the ears, but most of its read right off the items Wikipedia page and typically has errors.
14:32 can you break the flight time into days & years, not hours?
I loved the DC 10, 747, and the 707! THEY were incredible aircrafts!
This shows once again how successful, enduring and versatile the Boeing 707 has been. From airliner, to tanker, to AWACS platform and aerial command post. Some, still earning a living 70 years on from when the design was first proposed.
With the new system they're launching, an Air Plane is not needed at all, or it will be a part of the Gen 5s flying now❓
As long as NATO holds air superiority enemy ground elements don’t stand a chance anymore. Now with drones and anti-drone technology the battlefield has been transformed.
Not the plane but the system.
Adapt and overcome.
I love history… so all these ney sayers… b!te me 😉
I wonder how many nightmares these guys have
It is incomprehensible that Saddam would decide to attack Saudi Arabia, knowing that it was protected by the American army. Did he have guarantees from his Bush American allies?
As one of the last enlisted airmen to fly in the JSTARS it's not incredibly exciting but still a very useful jet. The Air Force low key cooked itself by retiring it with not back up anytime soon. Not only can it watch a vast area of ground for troop movements but also has tools to track low flying helps and uavs and uas. Love the jet, I'd go back and fly in her anytime.
Am subbed to all of your channels and I don't get to see every offering but this one was absolutely amazing…………………………eh, youtube?
😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊
😊❤😊❤😊
I had the opportunity to fly on an E-8 years ago. It was not as impressive as I had anticipated.
Air Force never misses an opportunity to shirk supporting ground forces.
No wonder a Air Force hammer cost fifty thousand dollars…
DARPA, Navy Army …we see a pattern..?
Boeing 707?!! WTH! The 707 was Boeings first jet from the late 50’s!! What was still doing around in the 90’s?!?!
The title had me wondering what they had done to a B-17 to make it qualify as a doomsday weapon.
I got a tour of the first Joint STARS platform while it was still under development. I was a little surprised when they deployed it to Dessert Storm because it looked a little raw at the time I saw it. A pretty amazing piece of tech for the 1990s!
That's our old tech…
Awesome to hear your voice!! I don’t like when you use the AI voice.
Is-lam-ick propaganda. It was the Serbs who were being ethnically cle-ansed, not the other way around!
…and no, the doors did not fall off.
Information wins wars!
You learn something new every day: I thought the surveillance aircraft of choice was the RC-135W Rivet Joint, adapted from the KC-135 tanker and always understood that the KC-135 was Boeing 707-based (like the E-8), but I was wrong in my last surmise, as the KC/RC-135 was Boeing 717-based. Also amazing that such incredibly aged aircraft (60+ years) are at the pinnacle of surveillance, but I suppose if it ain't broke….(the B-52 will be operating for a whole century before it retires, for instance).
What crushed Iraq was Americas ability to lie to itself and blindly follow war criminals.
Yay,the voice is slowed down ,awesome i can understand it now
At the time of the Iraqi conflict, the Joint Stars program was still under development and not in active service, the Pentagon decided to test/use it anyway and technicians and engineers deployed with it. Changes were being made at night between flights based on operator comments and questions during the day. This advanced the whole program years ahead of the estimated time.
before you get ahead of yourself, the USAF tasked 2 US NAvy p3 Orion Aircraft during Vietnam, using their emag sensors, they were able to track the electronic signatures of the vehicle engines to direct bombers onto mechanized haul roads….
This is old technology right? The systems now use satellites and stealth craft. Thanks for explaining the mission briefs but I guess you are telling us because the information is in the public domain and freely available on the internet. The graphics are exciting and the mood music adds tension but you must work on your content. Repeating footage to emphasize your delivery is a cheap trick. Either pay for new stock film or appear on screen to give a sense of likability. Nothing engages an audience more than an engaging presenter; or do you want to stay anonymous and so wipe any credibility?
I think it was General William Mitchell that said, "If you control the air, you cannot be beaten. If you lose control, you cannot win". 🇺🇸👁💀
Your use of superlatives such as INSANE to describe the mundane is pathetic. Either you are easily impressed or your command of the English language is limited.
When you don't fight a war with one hand tied around your balls.
I was a jet troop on the JSTARS. Had a lot of fun times turning wrenches with the guys in the shop and on the flight line.