Raytheon Co's Tomahawk cruise missiles failed to reach Iraqi targets in fewer than 2 percent of almost 800 missions during three weeks of the war, the US Navy commander in the Persian Gulf said.
Fewer than 10 of the satellite-guided missiles "didn't get to their targets," Vice Admiral Timothy Keating, commander of the US 5th Fleet, told reporters today. Seven missiles strayed into Saudi Arabia and Turkey and landed without exploding, forcing the US to rearrange flight patterns, officials said.
PHOTO: AFP
The US through yesterday dropped or fired almost 17,450 precision-guided weapons, including Tomahawks, at Iraqi targets, representing 67 percent of total bombs, defense officials said.
The Navy fired 288 Tomahawks in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
"The dramatic success we've enjoyed is likely due to our ability to prosecute specific targets throughout Iraq and yet prosecute with very pinpoint precision so we could go around areas where we didn't want to fire or didn't need to fire and get to the heart of the Iraqi regime leadership," Keating said.
The Tomahawk's expanded use also reflects upgrades of computers in the past decade to let commanders on ships plan missions within hours of receiving target coordinates, he said.
The "dramatic reduction" in planning and executing is enhanced "by the fusion of intelligence and operations and our ability to communicate over secure lines worldwide," Keating said.
"The types of targets were broad-ranging," Keating said.
The navy had about 1,500 Tomahawks in the region before the war started. About 35 of 140 vessels in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea and eastern Mediterranean are capable of firing the US$600,000-to-US$1 million missile.
The talks focus on starting before mid-2004, the current date for the work, company spokeswoman Jennifer Allen said. The navy asked Raytheon to be able to make as many as 600 Tactical Tomahawks a year, a boost from 456 first planned, said Allen and Navy spokeswoman Lieutenant Brauna Carl.
The navy and Raytheon are negotiating a five-year contract worth much as US$2 billion to purchase 1,353 Tactical Tomahawks. Raytheon has orders for 192. The Navy has boosted by 671 missiles to 2,396 the number of Tactical Tomahawks it plans to buy in what's a US$3 billion program.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique