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CNN Live Today

Reporting from Airbase Near Iraqi Border

Aired March 24, 2003 - 11:37   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: I want to get to an airbase here in the area near the Iraqi border.
Gary Tuchman, imbedded in the U.S. Air Force. There is significant activity yet again behind Gary by way of videophone.

Good evening, Gary. What do you have?

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Bill, good evening to you. Good afternoon and morning to the other people who are watching us. The first thing I want to tell you is an observation. The Pentagon has allowed us to stand by this one and only active runway at this base near Iraq, 24 hours a day to watch their war planes take off. We're not here 24 hours a day, but we are here the great majority of the day, and we've never seen it busier than it has been the last few hours.

This particular airbase, the exact location we're not allowed to tell you, has had 300 sorties in the last 24-hour period, 850 over the last few days at this one location alone. Meanwhile, Air Force officials are telling us that all their locations, they're expecting a total of 1,000 battle sorties today. That's 1,000 airplanes going into Iraq with bombs and missiles. There will be up to another 1,000 airplanes going in to support those missions. Those are supporting ground troops or dropping leaflets.

So that's the situation with the number of sorties that are going into Iraq. Of those 1,000 bombs and missiles, we are being told by Air Force officials, 800 of those 1,000 will be targeting Iraqi Republican Guard troops in the Baghdad area to help support the ground troops.

But 800 of those 1,000 are going for Iraqi Republican Guard troops. Now, yesterday we told you about some helicopters that took off at this base for search-and-rescue missions. We also told you the Air Force would not tell us why the search and rescue missions were taking place. These are Jolly helicopters, known as HH-60s. We have now learned why these helicopters left here, for two reasons. One, they were looking for two downed British airmen. The British airmen were aboard Tornado warplanes. They were shot down, unfortunately, by a Patriot missile battery.

The search-and-rescue mission was not able to locate the two men who are missing and presumed dead, but the other search and rescue mission was more successful. Seven special operations force members were pinned down amid enemy fire in Iraq. The helicopters flew out there, extracted the men, rescued them, and safely brought them back to this base near the Iraqi border. At this base, where we are right now, we've had two sirens today for ballistic missile alerts. We have heard that Patriot missiles have shot down three Iraqi missiles in this vicinity. When the missile siren goes off here, it causes quite a commotion.

My photographer, who is with me here, Demere Loretta (ph), my producer, Alex Quade (ph) and I, have kind of gotten used to these sirens. When we were in the Kuwait City area, the civilian areas; but when you're on a base, it's a whole different situation. People start running. People put on their chemical suits, their gas masks. They stop absolutely everything they're doing and go into bunkers, and it's happened twice this afternoon at this base near the Iraqi border.

Bill, back to you.

HEMMER: Gary, you're talking about the search and issue. We do know that there are two American pilots still missing somewhere in Iraq. I'm not quite sure how much you can glean from your position there, but do you know of any search and rescue operation launched from your location that might be going in to save them right now in Iraq?

TUCHMAN: Right. At our location, the Jolly helicopters, which are used for those search and rescue missions, have not taken off today as far as we know. So if there is a search and rescue mission taking place, which we assume there is, it could be happening from one of the many other bases in the theater.

HEMMER: All right, Gary. Gary Tuchman, by way of videophone, an airbase near the Kuwaiti/Iraqi border. Gary, thanks for that.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired March 24, 2003 - 11:37   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: I want to get to an airbase here in the area near the Iraqi border.
Gary Tuchman, imbedded in the U.S. Air Force. There is significant activity yet again behind Gary by way of videophone.

Good evening, Gary. What do you have?

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Bill, good evening to you. Good afternoon and morning to the other people who are watching us. The first thing I want to tell you is an observation. The Pentagon has allowed us to stand by this one and only active runway at this base near Iraq, 24 hours a day to watch their war planes take off. We're not here 24 hours a day, but we are here the great majority of the day, and we've never seen it busier than it has been the last few hours.

This particular airbase, the exact location we're not allowed to tell you, has had 300 sorties in the last 24-hour period, 850 over the last few days at this one location alone. Meanwhile, Air Force officials are telling us that all their locations, they're expecting a total of 1,000 battle sorties today. That's 1,000 airplanes going into Iraq with bombs and missiles. There will be up to another 1,000 airplanes going in to support those missions. Those are supporting ground troops or dropping leaflets.

So that's the situation with the number of sorties that are going into Iraq. Of those 1,000 bombs and missiles, we are being told by Air Force officials, 800 of those 1,000 will be targeting Iraqi Republican Guard troops in the Baghdad area to help support the ground troops.

But 800 of those 1,000 are going for Iraqi Republican Guard troops. Now, yesterday we told you about some helicopters that took off at this base for search-and-rescue missions. We also told you the Air Force would not tell us why the search and rescue missions were taking place. These are Jolly helicopters, known as HH-60s. We have now learned why these helicopters left here, for two reasons. One, they were looking for two downed British airmen. The British airmen were aboard Tornado warplanes. They were shot down, unfortunately, by a Patriot missile battery.

The search-and-rescue mission was not able to locate the two men who are missing and presumed dead, but the other search and rescue mission was more successful. Seven special operations force members were pinned down amid enemy fire in Iraq. The helicopters flew out there, extracted the men, rescued them, and safely brought them back to this base near the Iraqi border. At this base, where we are right now, we've had two sirens today for ballistic missile alerts. We have heard that Patriot missiles have shot down three Iraqi missiles in this vicinity. When the missile siren goes off here, it causes quite a commotion.

My photographer, who is with me here, Demere Loretta (ph), my producer, Alex Quade (ph) and I, have kind of gotten used to these sirens. When we were in the Kuwait City area, the civilian areas; but when you're on a base, it's a whole different situation. People start running. People put on their chemical suits, their gas masks. They stop absolutely everything they're doing and go into bunkers, and it's happened twice this afternoon at this base near the Iraqi border.

Bill, back to you.

HEMMER: Gary, you're talking about the search and issue. We do know that there are two American pilots still missing somewhere in Iraq. I'm not quite sure how much you can glean from your position there, but do you know of any search and rescue operation launched from your location that might be going in to save them right now in Iraq?

TUCHMAN: Right. At our location, the Jolly helicopters, which are used for those search and rescue missions, have not taken off today as far as we know. So if there is a search and rescue mission taking place, which we assume there is, it could be happening from one of the many other bases in the theater.

HEMMER: All right, Gary. Gary Tuchman, by way of videophone, an airbase near the Kuwaiti/Iraqi border. Gary, thanks for that.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com