DATE=10/7/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CONCRETE BOMB - (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-254774
BYLINE=JIM RANDLE
DATELINE=PENTAGON
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Pentagon officials say U-S pilots attacking
Iraq have started using a special kind of bomb that is
highly accurate - but does not blow up. The weapons
are filled with concrete instead of explosive. As V-
O-A's Jim Randle reports, the high-tech rock-throwing
is intended to wreck Iraqi air defenses without
hurting nearby civilians.
Text: A Pentagon spokesman says Iraq is putting
important military facilities in the middle of
civilian areas.
The apparent goal is to force U-S and British pilots
to either ignore the target, or risk handing Baghdad a
propaganda victory by killing civilians.
The official says non-exploding weapons reduce the
chance that fires or flying debris will hurt Iraqi
civilians.
Iraqi officials say nearly 200 people have been killed
in air strikes this year. U-S officials say the toll
is exaggerated, but refuse to offer an assessment of
their own.
U-S pilots have long used concrete-filled bomb casings
for training and practice, but this is the first time
that Washington has used what are essentially
satellite-guided rocks in combat.
The New York Times first reported the unusual tactic,
and says the weapons in this case weigh about 900-
kilograms. These `rocks' arrive at their target
traveling perhaps 800 kilometers per hour, so they can
do great damage to whatever they hit.
In this 1998 tape supplied by the Pentagon, we can
hear U-S pilots using lasers to guide bombs to Iraqi
targets.
/// Pilots act ///
Start coordination for (garble).
I've got (see) them in the (sensor) Pod.
Highly local guidance -- active.
Course one. Tally the second.
Splash. Splash.
/// end act ///
The highly technical language means the pilots pointed
laser beams at the target, and the bombs used the
reflected laser light as a beacon to find the target.
Pilots using inert bombs can use the same laser or
satellite guidance systems as regular bombs, and so
use similar procedures in the cockpit.
The change in tactics follows nine months of frequent
conflict between Allied planes patrolling Iraqi skies
and Baghdad's air defenses.
The U-S and British planes keep Iraqi air and ground
forces from attacking Iraqi dissident populations in
the far north and south of the country. Western
nations imposed the so-called no-fly zones after the
Gulf war in 1991. Iraq says the zones are illegal and
violate its sovereignty. (Signed)
NEB/JR/JP
07-Oct-1999 15:36 PM EDT (07-Oct-1999 1936 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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