With this year marking the 25th anniversary of Operation Desert Storm, I would love to hear from veterans who participated in that monumental event. Please feel welcome to share any stories you have of your experiences during the war, from the humorous to the humane and anything in between. Share them here if you would like. During AirVenture 2016, the EAA Timeless Voices of Aviation oral history team would be honored to help preserve your memories of the Gulf War. My thanks!
As for my own memories, I was a freshman in high school when the war started. I didn't have any immediate family in the service at that time, but some of my classmates and a few of my teachers did. I remember the school (Davis County Community High School in Bloomfield, Iowa - Go Mustangs!) had some banners on display in support of the troops and in some of our classes we watched what was happening on TV with the coalition bombing. I didn't understand, or really care at that time, about the politics involved. To an immature 14-year old kid, it was fascinating to watch F-15s and 16s blow up Saddam's buildings and tanks with narration by a guy named Wolf (I remember thinking, who names their kid Wolf, anyway?) on CNN. It was so far away in a different world. That is until the newspaper articles about service men and women from neighboring counties who had been killed started showing up. These were people who were really only a few years older than me. I had watched some of them play against our own basketball and football teams over the years. It made a big impression. I think I kind of always knew it, but the Gulf War really solidified it for me that freedom truly is not free. It is earned. It's fought for. People give everything for it. I have not served, but I have the utmost respect and admiration for all who do.
So as unpolished as it is, that is my memory of the Gulf War. What are yours?