Performance Of The Patriot Missile In The Gulf War PDF Download

This report responds to a Committee request to evaluate the U.S. Army's assessment of the Patriot missile's success in destroying Iraqi Scuds in the Gulf War. The purpose of this report is to evaluate whether one should have high confidence in Army claims that Patriot missiles intercepted and destroyed a large percentage of Scud warheads. The purpose is not to determine how effective Patriot missiles were against Scud warheads. Included per the Committee's request, is a compilation of official statements regarding Patriot performance in the war, reported ground damage from Scud attacks, and claims of Patriot success. The first part of this report recounts depictions of Patriot's role during Desert Storm as a widely perceived success. Except for a few concerns raised over the past year regarding damage from Patriot Scud engagements, serious questions regarding the Army's data surfaced only recently. After a brief review of why it is important to get as accurate a picture as possible of the Patriot antitactical missile (ATM), the bulk of the report focuses on: (1) a discussion of the data sources used by the Army, raising questions over how much confidence should be placed in them; and (2) an evaluation of the Army's stated methodology for deciding Patriot success in destroying Scud warheads. This report raises many questions about the Army's data and analysis.