Southwest Asia --
Millions of Americans tuned in as images of tanks
rolled across the desert sand, watching Saddam Hussein’s soldiers sweep aside
an army of 20,000 Kuwaiti men in a matter of hours. Citizens around the globe
watched in disbelief as it was a day that shook the world.
On Aug. 2, 1990, a total of 140,000 of Hussein’s soldiers,
operating 850 tanks, crossed into the country of Kuwait. Despite rising
tensions between Kuwait and Hussein, the Kuwaitis were not prepared for the
invasion. Hussein’s aircraft bombed Kuwait City and military installations throughout
the country.
The Kuwaiti Army retaliated against the invading
forces, but they were far outnumbered.
Kuwait turned to the United Nations in their time of
need. The Security Council approved a resolution calling for Hussein’s forces to
leave Kuwait and asked supporting nations to work together toward this
objective.
President George H.W. Bush ordered the organization
of Operation Desert Shield, responding to the invasion of Kuwait. The order
prepared American troops to join an international coalition. Operation Desert
Storm kicked off in January 1991.
Within days of the order, the United States made
their presence known in the Gulf. In just five weeks, the coalition air force
outnumbered the opposition’s air force.
Chief Master Sgt. Lorne Wyatt, 386th Expeditionary
Mission Support Group superintendent, received notification to deploy as an
Airman 1st Class, getting ready to sew on Senior Airman. He was part of the 374th
Tactical Airlift Wing working as a maintenance supply liaison and War Readiness
Spare Kit specialist. As newspaper headlines and televisions streamed the news
of the crisis in the Middle East, he knew it was only a matter of time before
U.S. forces would respond.
“I was at Yokota, Japan, when we first got the
notification to forward deploy with the C-130s,” said Wyatt.
Thirty-four nations, from Argentina to Bangladesh,
formed a broad-based coalition force against Hussein’s forces.
“I saw a lot of teamwork there,” said Wyatt. “It’s
just not one person that makes everything flow.”
Wyatt was part of the 1660th Tactical Airlift
Squadron and the 1686th TAS. His duties consisted of working with maintenance
job control, tracking Mission Impaired Capability Awaiting Parts and ensuring
inventory and resupply of the C-130 WRSK.
Wyatt leaned on his supervision at the time, guiding
him through his deployment. Time was of the essence.
“You get the alarm that went off and you would just
see flashes and then some booms, very similar to when you go to Afghanistan and
you get the attacks there,” said Wyatt. “It was a very similar situation. You
know you hear it and you may feel the ground shake, but you’re kind of like
good deal, it didn’t hit here and you just hope that nobody got hurt. There was
nothing you could do about it. You just tried to get in the right mindset where
you just protected yourself the best you could and hopefully their aim wasn’t
at you at that time.”
At the time, Hussein’s army was the fourth largest
in the world. Officials expected the battle to drive Hussein’s forces out of
Kuwait to be costly and long.
In the beginning of August 1990, the battle looked
like a difficult uphill climb, because Kuwait’s forces had little stopping
power against the Iraqi offense. By the middle of the month, coalition assets
from air, sea and ground made their presence known. By the end of the month,
Desert Shield matured into a force to be reckoned with.
The presence of Middle East Force ships deterred
Hussein’s forces of mine laying in the southern Persian Gulf. Naval aviation
complemented allied air operations, adding flexibility to the air campaign and
deterred reintroduction of Hussein’s aircraft from Iran into the conflict.
Within a week, five fighter squadrons and 14
conventional bombers deployed to the area of responsibility. Other elements
needed to sustain air operations—munitions and logistics—followed in a number
of weeks. By mid-September 1990, American forces had a balanced capability to
sustain combat operations.
Wyatt began his life-long career during a
significant point in history when he deployed for Operation Desert Shield. From
his humble beginning, Wyatt crossed trained into the command post career field,
working his way into a position serving on the Air Force Central Command
Directorate.
After 10 deployments throughout his 28-year career,
Wyatt goes back to Southwest Asia to bookend his career by supporting Operation
Inherent Resolve as the 386th MSG superintendent. As such, Wyatt is an enlisted
leader who advises the group commander on matters influencing the health,
morale, welfare, quality of life and professional development of enlisted
members.
“The Desert Shield/Storm deployment cemented the
accountability and responsibility early in my career due to the critical
mission set and allowed me to witness first-hand how my duties directly
contributed to the combat effectiveness of our unit,” said Wyatt. “As I
progressed in rank I stayed true to the rule of hard work and always set the example.”
“I learned to gain respect, you have to earn it,
which falls in line that I would never ask my folks to perform a task that I
wouldn't do or have done,” Wyatt continued. “Being transparent and honest is
key to any leadership position and over the years this is what I have strived
to uphold.”
Wyatt’s career came full circle—from the Airman who
leaned on his senior leaders to guide him through his first deployment, to
becoming the senior leader and leading Airmen through their deployment.
“[Operation Desert Shield] kind of gave me a purpose
to see what the military and what air power can do and it helped focus me on
just not staying four years in the military, but to make it a career,” said
Wyatt. “It is very humbling to be part of this great machine.”