86                                  U.S. MARINES IN THE PERSIAN aULF, 1990-1991


Col Bll~ C. Steed, lefi, force operations officer, and LiGen Boomer receive briefing short?y before
departing the I MEF main command post near Al Khanjarfor Kuwait at 0645 on 25 Febri'a,y
1991.

battery fire against Iraqi artillery and 120-millimeter mortars had the highest
priority followed by antiarmor and antipersonnel missions.  To preserve the
momentum of the assault, the 11th Marines of 1st Marine Division contrived
to use the targeting information it got from their radars in a novel manner. For
targets within about 24,600 meters, the regiment used standard "quick fire"
tactics.  Targets beyond that range were given to an aviator assigned to the unit
to pass to the FastFAC flying overhead the division in an FIA-18D jet.        Of
their first 42 counterbattery targets on 24 February, 11th Marines passed 17 to
Marine air.   Although this short-circuited air control doctrine, the exceptionally
short   time  required to get aerial or artillery munitions    on  target    was
unprecedented.40
   During the initial stages of the assault, the force's divisions were beyond
maximum range of the 2,700-pound projectiles of the 16-inch guns of battleships
USS Missouri (BB 63) and USS Wisconsin (BB 64) offshore.       However, these
immense     guns were  put to  good use  in support   of   the   Joint Forces
Command-Fast along the coast and were controlled by teams from 1st Air and
Naval Ounfire Liaison Company.
   The strong southeast wind and rain reduced the opportunity for the Iraqis to
effectively launch chemical weapons from indirect fire systems.  Nonetheless,
all personnel in the assault wore chemical protective suits and boots at level 2
of Mission Oriented Protective Posture (MOPP 2) and were prepared to immedi-
ately don masks and gloves.  At 0656 a vehicle from the 2d Marine Division's
2d Assault Amphibian Battalion attached to 6th Marines encountered a chemical
mine in Lane Red 1.   Two Marines were slow in getting masks and gloves on