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Thereafter, the wing constantly hit key political and
 military targets to further weaken Iraqi resistance and to
 prepare for the ground campaign. Early on, and employing
 only four F-117As, Stealth Fighter pilots attacked Baghdad's
 nuclear research facility, obliterating its three reactor
 cores. Of significance, the F-117A was the only coalition
 aircraft tasked to fly over Baghdad during the entire con-
 flict.
 
  In another strike, the wing destroyed a whole network of
  surface-to-air missile sites in central Iraq in the space of
 one hour, thus enabling B-52s to come in and carpet-bomb
 military production facilities without fear of interception.
Immediately prior to the start of the coalition's ground
 campaign, the F-ll7As destroyed a complex of pumping sta-
 tions and a distribution network that fed all into anti
 personnel fire trenches in southern Kuwait. This attack
 earned strong praise and the gratitude of the multinational
 ground forces. 
 
 The 37th's performance and devastating air power also
 drew high praise from military and political leaders. In
 particular, Senator Sam Nunn, Senate Armed Services Commit-
 tee Chairman, stated that:  [The F-ll7A was] the heart of
 our offensive power and targeting capability." Brigadier
 General Buster C. Glosson' Fourteenth Air Division Com-
 mender, called the wing  "the backbone of the strategic air
 campaign." General Colin S. Powell, Chairman of the Joint
 Chiefs of Staff, commented: "You are showing the nation
 what it's all about--the combination of the very highest
 technology with the very best kind of people we can put -
 together in the field as a team." Secretary of Defense,
 Richard B. Cheney, stated: "You have gone far beyond any-
 thing anybody envisioned. . .It has been phenomenal."
 Statistically, the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing compiled a
 record that is unparalleled in the chronicles of air war-
 fare: the "Nighthawks" achieved a 75 percent hit rate on
 pinpoint targets (1669 direct hits and 418 misses) while
 crippling nearly 40 percent of enemy strategic targets.
 

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