USS Leyte Gulf (CG-55) 1990-1991 Gulf War/Med Cruise/Middle East

I created this video with the YouTube Slideshow Creator (   / upload  ) A fun-filled journey to the Persian Gulf to fire missiles at targets far, far away and trying to avoid hitting mines we couldn't see. Chemical attack sirens going off when they got a whiff of the smoke from the thousands of oil well fires the withdrawing (fleeing) Iraqi troops, general quarters, trying not to panic while opening twenty year old rusty gas mask sardine cans with crumbling keys. Some guys ripped the lids of the defective canisters open with their bare hands and have the scars to prove it. All in all, if you have to wage a war, it is great to have several dozen countries participate on your side, which is why the ground war lasted about 100 hours. Not decades. Get in quick, do what you have to do quickly, get out even faster. No nation-building, no working with warlords, no stupid rules of engagement that change day to day.