Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

9-004

Title: Admiral Harvey on Iraq War

Sources: Sources: 1) Interview with Rear Admiral John Harvey-Commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Battle Group

Transcribe: JM

Editor: HZX/AX

Translator: JAM

Date: 03/24/03

INTRO: The U-S-led coalition is encountering fierce Iraqi resistance as it presses closer to Baghdad. However, a new brand of warfare gives the U-S a clear advantage from the skies and the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt a key role in the war. From the U-S-S Theodore Roosevelt in the Mediterranean Sea, Rear Admiral John Harvey spoke about this mission with V-O-A's William Chien.

TEXT: Admiral Harvey is personally satisfied with the performance of his fleet's air personnel during the first several days of the war. Their duties to destroy Saddam Hussein's two palaces, the troops under his command and several barracks of the Republican Guard were accomplished with all fighter planes returning safely from their missions. However, the fleet's success does not alter his expectations for the war.

// ACT HARVEY ENGLISH QUOTE //

"General Franks, I think he said it yesterday, he was pleased with the overall progress, things were moving along the timeline he wanted to move along, but he also warned there could be very tough days ahead, so I mean, this is war and to expect the unexpected and be ready for anything, and that is the position I've taken."

//ACT END//

Response to Navy, Marine, and Airforce missions from the Iraqi soldiers is consistent.

// ACT HARVEY ENGLISH QUOTE //

"Just about every mission we've got has seen triple A ground gunnery or gunfire coming up, varying sizes and degrees and they are also seeing missile shots particularly in the vicinity of larger cities. So, that, it's been that way since the start and is sort of maintained that as far as I can tell."

//ACT END//

Admiral Harvey explains in detail how the E-A6-V Prowler electronic counter-measures plane aboard his carrier helps prevent allied aircraft from being hit by ground fire. He says the Prowlers detect enemy radar and then proceed to either destroy or scramble that radar.

/// ACT HARVEY ENGLISH QUOTE ///

"One of the things that we have going for us is electronic warfare or the electronic attack. That is in our EA6V, the Prowler. I think that you all have seen that and there is a picture right there. And that is a key enabler for what we are doing here. And I can't overstress the importance of that because it is blinding the Iraqi air defense system. And so when our strikers are going in, whether they are going in with airforce planes, marine planes, or Navy planes, we give them this electronic attack capability right alongside right into mission. They blind the Iraqi surveillance system. They blind the Iraqi fire control system. And so that reduces them to this, what we would call a 'ballistic shot' of these long-range, anti-aircraft missiles, the SA2s and the SA3s that the Iraqis have."

//ACT END//

Electronic counter-measures warfare gives the coalition forces free-range over Iraqi airspace and keeps the Iraqi forces constantly in motion. An important aspect of these electromagnetic planes is their ability to detect the enemy's guided missile navigational system. Iraq's guided missile troops have no choice but to continuously change their positions in their effort to avoid being attacked by the electromagnetic planes. With every position change, The Iraqis must shut down their guided missile navigational system. This has drastically reduced the danger of Iraq's guided missiles on coalition airplanes.

// ACT HARVEY ENGLISH QUOTE //

"It also forces them to keep their other shorter-range missiles on the move. Because they'll stop, they'll take a quick rotate, electronic mission, very short one, and then they have to shutdown and move again because our planes can pick it up be able to conduct a counter attack right away. So, we've really, I think, with our superiority with this electronic attack business, we have been able to maintain our ability to go to the most heavily defended areas of Iraq and carry out our mission."

//ACT END//

Admiral Harvey says that because Turkey and Syria are not permitting U.S. planes to fly over their territorial airspace, the tactic of the two aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean is to act from the southeastern corner of the Mediterranean Sea. Too many planes on the carrier fly from the south over Egyptian and Saudi Arabian airspace. This is a much longer route for the fighter planes and requires that they fuel up in mid-air. The time of the attack missions is quite long which can tire the pilots.

// ACT HARVEY ENGLISH QUOTE //

"There are a number of approaches we can take where coalition partners or allies make airspace available to us for overflight, and we can take advantage of that and that is where you see the great inherent advantage of an enabled force. If we need to go north, then high-ho silver away, we go, and we go at 30 knots and get there in 10 hours and if something changes and we need to go back down south, then we turn around and do the exact same mission from a very different location, and so the overflight is certainly important and tanker availability is certainly important. We are getting the job done very well from either location."

//ACT END//

Within the past four months, a branch of the Navy task force has been marshalling themselves into soldiers aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt.

// ACT HARVEY ENGLISH QUOTE //

"They have been part of the overall mission, the overall package, while maybe not in that specific flight, but they join up and they push in, in response to what is called the air tasking order, which coordinates the all coalition aircraft activity over Iraq and that is the key document that comes out and gives us here's what they want us to do and here's where they want us to do it.. On a strike the other night, they had an attack role to play. So, they had their own targets to hit just like we had our own targets assigned to hit, and just happened to be in the same area and at the same time. So they were formed up in one, what we would call, package, and pressed on into there. Marine and Airforce planes last night. Patrol. They provided us with main patrol aircraft."

//ACT END//

The role of Admiral Harvey's fleet is ready to fill any role needed by troops on the ground in Iraq.

// ACT HARVEY ENGLISH QUOTE //

"We are prepared to ship to what is called close-air support, where we train to that and we are prepared to carry that out where our fighter aircraft will respond directly to a small unit engaged on the ground, a forward air controller, and he will call in and pass the direct coordinates or using a lasing system to indicate the target and with the very precise weapons that we have now, and this was what was being done in Afghanistan, the same type of thing, our squadron of F-14s responding directly to special operation forces..in tight areas, confined areas, in close combat and providing that kind of direct support and I see that as one of the capabilities that we can provide wherever the army happen to be fighting on the ground."

//ACT END//

This is Voice of America correspondent, William Chien, reporting from the USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Mediterranean Sea.

-------------------------

Actualities found in DALET/Language Bubble/23/1746 Chien Naval Carrier:

"Yeah, I think it will go like you see now, we will be responding as the tactical situation changes and that is one of the great things about the flexibility that we have here both with the Theodore Roosevelt and the Harry S. Truman, and as the needs on the ground change, and as the battle tempo changes then the demands made upon the Naval aviation carrier strike forces will also change, whether it is a tomahawk strike or with our tactical aviation, so I see us as flexing to support whatever the needs of the battle on the ground.

I just really can't predict that. General Franks, I think he said it yesterday, he was pleased with the overall progress, things were moving along the timeline he wanted to move along, but he also warned there could be very tough days ahead, so I mean, this is war and to expect the unexpected and be ready for anything, and that is the position I've taken.

No, I'm not concerned that there is too much going on. I'm always concerned about the safety of our aviators when they go into a war situation, when they go into a situation where there are a lot of other aircraft operating, whether its here or in the Gulf or in the skies over Iraq. I mean, this is this is a challenging situation, and that, one that requires the utmost in professionalism with everyone involved, the pilots flying, those in a control positions who are advising the pilots where they are, controlling their movements to some degree. So, my concern is certainly heightened because of everything else that goes along with a lot of aircraft and tactical situations where their making their strikes, where they're flying their missions and then having to degress again on very rigid timelines to support the battle campaign. So, yes, I'm concerned, but I'm also.uh, feel very confident that the professionalism with the folks that we've got will carry us through on this.

It's very consistent. Just about every mission we've got has seen triple A ground gunnery or gunfire coming up, varying sizes and degrees and they are also seeing missile shots particularly in the vicinity of larger cities. So, that, it's been that way since the start and is sort of maintained that as far as I can tell.

One of the things that we have going for us is electronic warfare or the electronic attack. That is in our EA6V, the Prowler. I think that you all have seen that and there is a picture right there. And that is a key enabler for what we are doing here. And I can't overstress the importance of that because it is blinding the Iraqi air defense system. And so when our strikers are going in, whether they are going in with airforce planes, marine planes, or Navy planes, we give them this electronic attack capability right alongside right into mission. They blind the Iraqi surveillance system. They blind the Iraqi fire control system. And so that reduces them to this, what we would call a 'ballistic shot' of these long-range, anti-aircraft missiles, the SA2s and the SA3s that the Iraqis have. It also forces them to keep their other shorter-range missiles on the move. Because they'll stop, they'll take a quick rotate, electronic mission, very short one, and then they have to shutdown and move again because our planes can pick it up be able to conduct a counter attack right away. So, we've really, I think, with our superiority with this electronic attack business, we have been able to maintain our ability to go to the most heavily defended areas of Iraq and carry out our mission.

You can't operationally, I don't think that you can tell the difference. I mean, they are joined at headquarters, they are joined in the field, joined in tactical squadrons. You know, we had exchange officer, exchange officers in various tactical squadrons. They come to ours. Ours go to theirs. Very, very close cooperation at every level in the chain of command, from the highest control function to the actual out in the field tactical mission. They have been part of the overall mission, the overall package, while maybe not in that specific flight, but they join up and they push in, in response to what is called the air tasking order, which coordinates the all coalition aircraft activity over Iraq and that is the key document that comes out and gives us here's what they want us to do and here's where they want us to do it.

On a strike the other night, they had an attack role to play. So, they had their own targets to hit just like we had our own targets assigned to hit, and just happened to be in the same area and at the same time. So they were formed up in one, what we would call, package, and pressed on into there. Marine and Airforce planes last night. Patrol. They provided us with main patrol aircraft.

I think that some people on the outside were thinking that that this would be over very rapidly. And I never thought that. I thought that we'd have these very powerful strikes come in and they'd be very closely coordinated with a rapid ground campaign unfolding as we speak here, so, there are these pockets of resistance that remain, and you still see stories being reported on that down south where the marines are. And while you expect the unexpected, in an overall sort of view of this, I have not been surprised by what we've seen. And I think that is why General Franks yesterday said the other day that he thinks this is going well and along the timeline that he expected, but he warns that there could be tough times ahead. And I think that he got it exactly right. And that is the posture that I am taking right now. Certainly not irrelevant. There are a number of approaches we can take where coalition partners or allies make airspace available to us for overflight, and we can take advantage of that and that is where you see the great inherent advantage of an enabled force. If we need to go north, then high-ho silver away, we go, and we go at 30 knots and get there in 10 hours and if something changes and we need to go back down south, then we turn around and do the exact same mission from a very different location, and so the overflight is certainly important and tanker availability is certainly important. We are getting the job done very well from either location.

The ships that transited the Suez Canal and went to the Red Sea are under the tactical control now of the commander Fitzley. They are in the Central Command, or what we call the AOR, Area of Responsibility. Now, there are still ships that belong to either the Harry S. Truman or the Theordore Roosevelt battle group, so we have an administrative connection to them but I am not controlling their movements specifically, so, uh, that is being done by CentCom. Now, we still have a lot going on here where we are monitoring the flow of the MSC, military sea-lift command shipping, from the Suez Canal to the Straits of Gibralter. We got to be responsible for their safe movement back and forth for that whole time. We also have a number of other ships on standby in the AOR. We have mine counter measure ships, if necessary, to keep the Suez Canal open. We have other ships that we are using for potential tomahawk strikes from the eastern Mediterranean. And we have the overall role to make sure that we are protected from any potential threat to the carrier. There is quite a bit going on. What you see around you is the tip of the iceberg. There is a lot beneath the waterline, happening all the time. Day or night. 24 hours. 7 days a week.

Everybody will have a piece of that. Your responsible for.the Navy will be responsible for getting those ships from the Straits of Gibraltar, all the way through the canal, around Saudi Arabia and up into the Gulf. So, we'll hand it over to the 5th Fleet Forces to finish that job.

We are prepared to ship to what is called close-air support, where we train to that and we are prepared to carry that out where our fighter aircraft will respond directly to a small unit engaged on the ground, a forward air controller, and he will call in and pass the direct coordinates or using a lasing system to indicate the target and with the very precise weapons that we have now, and this was what was being done in Afghanistan, the same type of thing, our squadron of F-14s responding directly to special operation forces..in tight areas, confined areas, in close combat and providing that kind of direct support and I see that as one of the capabilities that we can provide wherever the army happen to be fighting on the ground.