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| Operation Granby | |
|---|---|
| Part of theGulf War | |
 C Company, 1st BattalionThe Staffordshire Regiment, in alive firing exercise, during OperationGranby, 6 January 1991. | |
| Operational scope | Strategic offensive |
| Location | |
| Objective | Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait; EmirJaber III restored |
| Executed by |  United Kingdom |
| Outcome | Operational Success |
  | |
Operation Granby, commonly abbreviatedOp Granby, was the code name given to the British military operations during the 1991Gulf War. 53,462 members of theBritish Armed Forces were deployed during the conflict.[1] Forty-seven British personnel were killed during Op Granby and many more were injured during the hostilities there.[2] The total cost of operations was £2.434 billion (1992), of which at least £2.049 billion was paid for by other nations such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. £200 million of equipment was lost or written off.[3]
The Joint Commander Gulf Forces, based in the United Kingdom atRAF High Wycombe, wasAir Chief Marshal (ACM)SirPatrick Hine 1 October 1990 – 31 March 1991, and Air Chief Marshal SirMichael Graydon from 31 March 1991. His political adviser wasAndrew Palmer.
The Commander of British Forces Middle East, the in-theatre commander, based inRiyadh, wasAir Marshal (AM)Andrew Wilson (September–October 1990), thenLieutenant-General SirPeter de la Billière 6 October 1990 – March 1991, andAir Vice-MarshalIan Macfadyen from March 1991.
The Air Commander of British Forces Middle East, initially Arabian Peninsula, was Air Vice MarshalAndrew Wilson from August to 17 November 1990, then Air Vice MarshalWilliam (Bill) Wratten from 17 November 1990.
The Senior British Naval Officer Middle East wasCaptain Anthony McEwen,Royal Navy until September 1990, onHMS York, thenCommodorePaul Haddacks from September to December 1990. Commodore Christopher Craig, onHMS Brave andHMS London, was in command from 3 December 1990 to March 1991.
Within nine days of theinvasion of Kuwait on 2 August 1990, 12Panavia Tornado F3 interceptors from5 (AC) Squadron and29 (F) Squadron fromRAF Coningsby arrived inSaudi Arabia, alongside aircraft of theUnited States Air Force (USAF). Later,Jaguar GR1 aircraft fromRAF Coltishall, andTornado GR1s, redeployed from service inRAF Germany deployed to the theatre.Buccaneer aircraft fromRAF Lossiemouth were deployed in order tolaser designate ground targets for the Tornado and Jaguar.[4]
This action had the effect of maintaining the confidence of friendly nations, and limiting the potential for further Iraqi expansion. When an economicembargo was placed on Iraq, these aircraft helped maintain it. The force of Tornado F3s was expanded to 18, drawn from the three British bases then housing F3s,RAF Leuchars,RAF Leeming, and RAF Coningsby, with 27 air crew and 350 ground personnel. RAF ground personnel and aircraft weapons technicians were also taken from TWCU at RAF Honington, and operated Tornados out ofTabuk airfield.[5]
The firstSCUD missile attack launched against a coalition airbase was at Tabuk. It was a conventional missile and only caused minor damage.[5]
RAF forces were based at theRoyal Saudi Air Force airbase atDhahran, from where they flew patrols inside the range of Iraqiground radar systems. Before the launch of the operation to liberate Kuwait, they flew over 2,000 sorties.Victor tankers based at Jubail Naval Base provided AAR support to all the coalition aircraft.Hercules,VC10, andTriStar aircraft supplied both the Royal Air Force and other military endeavours.Nimrod MR.2P aircraft assisted naval operations. At bases inTabuk,Dhahran, andMuharraq, the RAF deployedRapier missiles as part of surface-to-air defences. In total, around 6,000 RAF personnel were deployed to the Gulf.[5]
RAF commanders, along with the other partners inthe coalition, deemed it necessary to prevent theIraqi Air Force (IrAF) operating to any significant degree. Believed to have around 700 combat aircraft, as well asScud ballistic missiles and chemical weapons, they could not be left to help support Iraqi ground forces, now entrenched in positions on the border. Because of the level of supplies coming from Iraq to forces in Kuwait, it would have been impossible to separate targets merely in Kuwait from an offensive into Iraq. Coalition air forces outnumbered the IrAF 3-to-1.[5]
The first part of theGulf War air campaign was directed against the IrAF. Early on 17 January, RAF Tornado GR1s flew into Iraq, with air-to-air refuelling tanker support. The first targets were Iraqi airbases, which housed a variety of defence systems and aircraft. These attacks were co-ordinated inRiyadh by the Joint Allied Headquarters, with Wratten now leading the British command. Aircraft were almost totally integrated into a single coalition force. Support aircraft in raids, therefore, could be from any coalition power. Within 24 hours, a hundred sorties were completed.[5]
After seven days, the RAF's focus, like the rest of coalition air forces, moved to targets supporting Iraqi forces in Kuwait. These included oil refineries, and strategic bridges over theRiver Euphrates. During operations, civilians were killed in incidences when the sophisticated guidance systems on the weaponry used failed, and buildings close to these bridges, many in populated areas, were hit instead. On the whole, many pilots were frustrated by the lack of combat.[5]
In every combat role, the RAF was second to USAF involvement, but ahead of other members of the coalition. Of the around 55 Allied aircraft lost, eight were RAF Tornados; these aircraft types flew a total of 2,500 sorties. Five air crew were lost in operations, and three in preparations.[5]
A singleBritish Army armoured brigade was initially dispatched to the Gulf, later augmented to a two-brigade division, which became the1st Armoured Division. The decision was made that the relatively newChallenger tank be sent, rather than the older and more reliableChieftain tanks, which were being superseded.[6] ThePrime Minister,Margaret Thatcher, "insisted on Challenger's reliability in the Gulf. In consequence to this demand,BAOR regiments in Germany became 'a scrap yard' of [tank hulls] without spares, sitting on wooden blocks. Everything else was being sent to the Gulf as spares in support of7th Armoured Brigade."[7] The entire British Army's power pack repair facility was deployed to the Gulf with the division.[8]
The ground forces had a peak strength of 28,000 men, comprising 7,000 vehicles, including 179 Challenger 1 tanks, 316 Warriors, 79 artillery pieces and 16 MLRS.
During the ground phase, the 1st Armoured Division took part in the "left-hook" which outflanked Iraqi forces.[9] It participated in theBattle of Norfolk. BritishChallenger 1 tanks destroyed approximately 300 Iraqi tanks, including achieving the longest-range tank-kill in the war from three miles away.[10]
The British Army also inflicted heavy artillery and various other combat vehicle losses on the Iraqi Army.[11] The British Army destroyed approximately five Iraqi divisions in 48 hours of combat.[12] Afriendly fire incident, when an AmericanFairchild Republic A-10A Thunderbolt aircraft attacked two BritishWarrior vehicles, resulted in the deaths of nine British service personnel. This incident was featured in an edition of The Cook Report entitled "Death by Maverick".
TheRoyal Navy made a significant contribution to Allied efforts in the early stages of the war. In particular, Royal NavyWestland Lynx helicopters were responsible for the destruction of almost the entireIraqi Navy in theBattle of Bubiyan, also known as the Battle of the Bubiyan Channel.[13]
Royal Navyminehunters cleared Iraqi mines near the Kuwaiti coast, allowing the US battleshipsWisconsin andMissouri to move in close enough to launch devastating bombardments against Iraqi ground forces.HMSGloucester intercepted an IraqiSilkworm missile heading towardsHMSLondon,mine countermeasures vessels, and the US battleships.