USS New Jersey in Lebanon Channeling Thread

[Shipwreck]

As briefly alluded to in post #43 in this thread, a large US airstrike was cancelled at the last minute in early November of 1983, i.e. about one month before the sabotaged airstrike of 4 December 1983 (see posts #31 and #32 in this thread).

Below are some details on this cancelled airstrike given by Chuck Pfarrer in his Warrior Soul : The Memoir of a Navy Seal

Pages 254-255 : A week before we rotated onto Iwo, Frank's boat crews had mounted out to provide combat search and rescue for a large American air strike.

Launched from Dwight D. Eisenhower, the air raid was supposed to be a multisquadron attack package, Intruders, Corsairs, and Tomcats delivering a six-pack of whoop-a$$ called an alpha strike.

The entire complement of Eisenhower's combat aircraft had been loaded with ordnance, launched, and flown toward Lebanon, ready to pummel the Shouf and Bekaa valley.

But the air strike never happened. At the last minute, Washington pulled the plug. The planes did a U-turn, dropped their bombs into the sea, and returned to the carrier.

This aborted airstrike was the only retribution the Reagan administration was to attempt for the bombing of the marine barracks. The averted air strike was kept secret for years. Its effect on marine morale can probably be imagined.

[Shipwreck]

Originally Posted by Shipwreck

2. The airstrike of 4 December 1983, where 2 aircrafts were lost, was sabotaged and the apparent failure of this airstrike was what cleared the way for USS New Jersey to use her 16-inch guns.

To summarize :

1. A large US airstrike prepared in retaliation to the suicide bombing of the Marine barracks at BAI was cancelled by *Washington* in early November of 1983. This had a termendously negative impact on marine morale as can easily be imagined. (see post #46)

2. A second US airstrike was sabotaged on 4 December 1983 when *Washington* issued instructions to the effect that USN aircrafts should operate at a level of 6,000 meters (instead of low altitude as planned initially) and would fly with the rising sun in their eyes because of the time change for the strike (5:45-6:30 a.m. instead of 11:00 a.m. as planned initially). This resulted in the loss of two USN planes, one pilot DIA and another one POW. (see posts #31 & #32)

3. The French airstrike of 17 November 1983 showed that the low-altitude airstrike initially planned for the sabotaged US air strike of 4 December 1983 could not only result in the targets being surgically obliterated, but also that this could be accomplished without combat losses. (see post #43)

4. The apparent failure of the sabotaged airstrike of 4 December 1983 is what cleared the way for USS New Jersey to use her 16-inch guns for the first time on 14 December 1983 (she had arrived off the coasts of Lebanon on 25 September 1983).

5. The aborted airstrike of early November 1983 was kept secret for years, the official documents on the sabotaged attack of 4 December 1983 have never been published and the official documents on the abysmally poor gunnery performance of USS New Jersey in Lebanon (including the GAO study) are still classified (or their distribution is limited to US Govt agencies only).