Q & A GEN. COLIN POWELL, USA (RET)

fi rst involved the loss of an AC-130 [gunship that was supporting coali- tion ground forces in the Battle of Khaf i. The air war had begun Jan. 17. On Jan. 29, Saddam ordered Iraqi forces to invade Saudi Arabia from southern Kuwait.] AC-130s always fl ew at night for protection against ground-to-air missiles. But on Jan. 31, one of the planes stayed up after daylight. It got hit, and we lost 14 people. I was disgusted. It was not what they should have been doing, and so brave young men made the supreme sacrifi ce. The second event involved that

Powell speaks with a patient at a field medical facility (top) and greets personnel (above) during Operation Desert Shield. (below) Powell and Schwarzkopf confer over tea during a meet- ing regarding the allied military coalition.

bunker in Baghdad that was a com- mand center. Unbeknownst to us, local civilians went to that complex for protection. We hit it one morning in February with two laser-guided bombs and killed a lot of civilians who had gone there for refuge. After that, we slowed down our targeting and bombing. The worst day came at the tail end of the operation, when a lucky Iraqi Scud missile hit a tent complex in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, where U.S. troops were barracked. Twenty- seven died. Those are the things that bothered me the most.

Several days into the ground offensive, Feb. 27, 1991, General Schwarzkopf explained that maneuver to the world in what become known as “the Mother of All Briefings.” He described in remarkable detail how coalition forces were destroying Saddam’s forces. Do you remember discussing with him how he would brief that day? We talked every day. I didn’t know he was going to be quite as fl amboy- ant as he was, and it was a little more than I was expecting. But it was not an issue or a problem for me or

70 MILITARY OFFICER JANUARY 2016 PHOTOS: NATIONAL ARCHIVES