A Persian Gulf War chronology.

1. Persian Gulf War: The War Over Oil
James Tarver – EDTC 614

2. July 1990
• “Internal Look”, a U.S. war game, shows Saudi
Arabia could be defended against Iraqi
invaders, but at terrible cost.

3. Aug 2, 1990
• Iraq invades Kuwait.

4. Aug 5, 1990
• President Bush declares invasion "will not
stand."

5. Aug 6, 1990
• King Fahd meets with Richard Cheney,
requests U.S. military assistance.

6. Aug 8, 1990
• Initial U.S. Air force fighter planes arrive in
Saudi Arabia.

7. Aug 10, 1990
• John Warden first meets with Schwarzkopf in
Tampa to outline proposed air campaign.

8. Aug 28, 1990
• Secret Israeli delegation flies to Washington to
stress likelihood of Iraqi attack on Israel if war
begins.

9. Sept 18, 1990
• Schwarzkopf asks four Army planners to begin
work on ground offensive.

10. Oct 10, 1990
• CENTCOM's One Corps Concept unveiled at
White House.

11. Oct 21, 1990
• Colin Powell flies to Riyadh to discuss
offensive plans.

12. Oct 31, 1990
• Bush decides to double U.S. forces in Saudi
Arabia; decision kept secret until November 8.

13. Nov 29, 1990
• UN Security Council authorizes use of "all
means necessary" to eject Iraq from Kuwait.

14. Dec 6, 1990
• First ship carrying VII Corps equipment arrives
in Saudi Arabia from Germany.

15. Jan 9, 1991
• James Baker meets Tariq Aziz in Geneva in
unsuccessful effort to find a peaceful solution.

16. Jan 12, 1991
• Congress authorizes use of force.

17. Jan 15, 1991
• UN deadline for Iraqi withdrawal. Schwarzkopf
accuses Air Force of ignoring orders by not
including Republican Guard in initial bombing
sorties.

18. Jan 17, 1991
• Allied attack begins with Apache strike at 2:38
A.M.

19. Jan 18, 1991
• First Scuds hit Israel. Navy aircraft losses
during attack on Scud sites leads to
recriminations about low-altitude bombing
tactics. First American air attacks are launched
from Turkey.

20. Jan 19, 1991
• David Eberly and Thomas Griffith are shot
down.

21. Jan 20, 1991
• Lawrence Eagleburger and Paul Wolfowitz
arrive in Tel Aviv.

22. Jan 22, 1991
• Navy attacks Iraqi oil tanker, triggering
Schwarzkopf's threat of court-martial. British
high command, alarmed at aircraft losses,
abandons low-altitude attacks against
airfields.

23. Jan 23, 1991
• Intense attack against Iraqi aircraft shelters
begins.

24. Jan 26, 1991
• U.S. Marines in Oman participate in Sea
Soldier IV, rehearsal for amphibious landing on
Kuwaiti coast.
• F-111s attack oil manifolds at Al Ahmadi in
effort to counter Iraqi sabotage.

25. Jan 29, 1991
• Iraqis attack Khafji and other border positions.
Allied pilots begin flying combat air patrols to
thwart Iraqi flights to Iran.

26. Jan 30, 1991
• Richard Cheney dispatches Delta Force to
Saudi Arabia to hunt for Scuds.

27. Jan 31, 1991
• Khafji is recaptured. David Eberly is moved to
new prison, the "Biltmore."

28. Feb 1, 1991
• Last Tomahawk missiles are launched in attack
on Baghdad airfield.

29. Feb 2, 1991
• Schwarzkopf formally decides against
amphibious landing in Kuwait.

30. Feb 3, 1991
• First battleship gunfire against targets in
Kuwait.

31. Feb 5, 1991
• First "tank-plinking" mission flown.

32. Feb 6, 1991
• VII corps finishes closing in theater with arrival
of final 3rd Armored Division equipment.

33. Feb 7, 1991
• CIA, in daily intelligence brief, notes large
discrepancy between Washington and Riyadh
regarding destruction of Iraqi armor in air
attacks.

34. Feb 8, 1991
• Cheney and Powell fly to Riyadh for final
review of ground war plans.

35. Feb 11, 1991
• Al Firdos bunker in Baghdad suburb added to
master attack plan. Moshe Arens in
Washington complains about ineffectiveness
of Patriot missile against Scuds. Yevgeni
Primakov arrives in Baghdad to urge Iraqi
withdrawal.

36. Feb 13, 1991
• Strike on Al Firdos bunker kills more than two
hundred civilians and leads to restrictions on
strategic bombing campaign.

37. Feb 15, 1991
• Radio Baghdad suggests Iraq willing to
withdraw, Bush rejects proposal as a "cruel
hoax."

38. Feb 16, 1991
• VII Corps moves into final attack positions.

39. Feb 18, 1991
• U.S.S. Tripoli and U.S.S. Princeton strike mines.
Army complaints about insufficient air support
lead to confrontation with Air Force.

40. Feb 20, 1991
• 1st Cavalry Division feints up the Wadi al
Batin; pulls back with three dead and nine
wounded.

41. Feb 21, 1991
• CIA and Pentagon officials meet at White
House to air differences over battle-damage
assessment. Bush sets deadline of noon,
February 23, for Iraqi withdrawal.

42. Feb 22, 1991
• Marines begin infiltrating into Kuwaiti boot-
heel.

43. Feb 23, 1991
• Stealth fighters attack Iraqi intelligence
headquarters, unaware that allied POWs are
inside. Army Special Forces teams inserted
deep into Iraq.

44. Feb 24, 1991
• Ground attack begins. Schwarzkopf decides to
accelerate main attack of VII Corps by fifteen
hours.

45. Feb 25, 1991
• Schwarzkopf explodes at slow pace of VII
Corps. 101st Airborne Division cuts Highway 8
in Euphrates Valley. Iraqis counterattack 1st
Marine Division. Scud destroys barracks in Al
Khobar, killing twenty- eight Americans and
wounding ninety-eight.

46. Feb 26, 1991
• Iraqis flee Kuwait City. VII Corps hits
Republican Guard in Battle of 73 Easting.

47. Feb 28, 1991
• Cease-fire takes effect at 8 A.M.

48. Mar 2, 1991
• 24th Infantry Division fights Hammurabi
Division as it flees; destroys six hundred
vehicles.

49. Mar 3, 1991
• Schwarzkopf meets Iraqi generals at Safwan.

50. Mar 5, 1991
• David Eberly and most other POWs are
released.

51. June 8, 1991
• Victory parade in Washington.

52. Reference
• Atkinson, R. (1993). Crusade: the untold story
of the Persian Gulf War. Boston, MA:
Houghton Mifflin.