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US Forces Order of Battle - 02 December

This is a "best available" order-of-battle of forces deployed in CENTCOM's part of Southwest Asia, as well as EUCOM forces in Turkey participating in Operation Northern Watch. Over time, the amount of publicly available information concerning aircraft types and specific units has diminished to the point that it is no longer possible to provide a high fidelity profile of current deployments. There are evidently significant gaps in unit identifications, as well as non-trivial uncertainties as to numbers of specific types of aircraft. The presence of significant numbers of civilian contractor personnel at various facilities in the region further complicates accounting for total personnel numbers.

Excluding forces deployed in direct support of Operation Enduring Freedom, there are probably about 44,000 military personnel in the CENTCOM area of responsibility, including about 400 aircraft of all types. The number of troops deployed in the area fluctuates on a daily basis, and has averaged between 20,000 and 25,000 in recent years, with typically about 200 aircraft in the region. Forces in the region include a mix of special operations forces deployed in support of US Central Command operations. To enhance force protection throughout the region, additional military security personnel are also deployed.

Ground forces include a variety of units that are normally deployed in the region, which total about 3,700 troops. Forces in the region include a Patriot missile task force with two batteries deployed in Saudi Arabia and two in Kuwait. The Army Intrinsic Action / Desert Spring training exercises routinely deploy 1,500 to 5,000 troops for rotations of several months. As of late-September 2002 a brigade rotation was in progress having just begun, ultimately this will involve as many as 10,000 soldiers in Kuwait. In addition to the 3,700 soldiers normally in the region, this troop rotation, once completed, could bring the total Army presence to nearly 14,000 soldiers. However it is possible that the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division will return to the United States. As of late-October there were roughly 10,000 soldiers based in the region, with some 6,000 in Kuwait. On 24 September 2002 it was reported that the 82nd Airborne Division had been notified to be prepared to deploy to the Gulf within two weeks.

The EUCOM Area of Responsibility includes approximately 1,700 Air Force personnel at Incrilik AB Turkey, flying Operation Northern Watch patrols. Prior to Operation Enduring Freedom, approximately 6,200 Air Force personnel were normally stationed in the CENTCOM Area of Responsibility. As many as 17,500 Air Force personnel may be currently stationed in the CENTCOM and EUCOM areas responsible for operations against Iraq, operating a total of about 280 aircraft of all types.

Naval units include a headquarters and shore-based units comprised of about 1,200 people at Manama in Bahrain. Nearly a thousand civilian mariners are associated with Military Sealift Command ships at Diego Garcia. During the 1990s overal Naval force personnel levels in the CENTCOM AOR typically varied between 8,000 and 15,000. Each Carrier Battlegroup, with its associated Carrier Air Wing, has approximately 11,000 sailors embarked. Each Amphibious Group has about 1,700 sailors, 1,500 Marines, and 700 Marine aviators embarked. As of late-November 2002 there was one carrier battle group in the area, and one amphibious group, for a total of slightly less than 20,000 naval personnel. These units included about 128 helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. A total of about 400 Vertical Launch System cells are available for Tomahawk cruise missiles, which is roughly twice the average number typically deployed in recent years. Based on estimates of prior deployments, perhaps as many as 150 Tomahawks are actually deployed. The cruise missile force can be augmented significantly within days.

Currently, there are about 370 combatant and direct support aircraft in the Iraq [CENTCOM and EUCOM] Area of Responsibility, which total includes air to air, air to ground, dual role, direct support, and attack helicopters.

Recent Developments

Roughly 120 airmen from the 729th Air Control Squadron deployed to Southwest Asia on Monday November 25, 2002. The unit flies E-8 JSTARS and the deployment is part of a normal rotation in support of Southern Watch.Where they will be based at is not clear, though Prince Sultan Air Base is the most likely location.

The 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit is no longer in the region and was reported to have been off the coast of East Timor conducting humanitarian operations. The movement has took place in the last two to three weeks.

The USS Kitty Hawk and elements of her Battle Group will make a port call at Hong Kong on November 29 through December 3. A story in the Atlantic County News adds to the speculation that the Hawk may not be returning to Yokosuka following its departure from Hong Kong, but will rather transit to the Persian Gulf region.

Djibouti has been added to the list of locations related to the military build-up for Iraq. For some time now news reports have indicated that Djibouti is a location in which US forces, specifically Marines, have been training for a possible war with Iraq. Furthermore, a late-November VOA news story reported that about 450 Army troops plus 50 civilian defense workers had been operating a forward staging base for soldiers and military equipment heading to Kuwait in support of Operation "Desert Spring". This task had previously been carried out in Kuwait, but Djibouti had replaced it as the site of choice. According to that same news story, an estimated two brigades worth of equipment and troops had moved through Djibouti, with half of it reportedly going on to Kuwait and the other half back to the United States.