Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!cbnews!military From: sma2!fred@uunet.UU.NET (Fred Brooks) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Diego Garcia Message-ID: <1990Aug15.032110.25950@cbnews.att.com> Date: 15 Aug 90 03:21:10 GMT References: <1990Aug9.015845.8381@cbnews.att.com> Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker) Organization: sma2 Lines: 44 Approved: military@att.att.com From: sma2!fred@uunet.UU.NET (Fred Brooks) In article <1990Aug9.015845.8381@cbnews.att.com> DAN.S.SULLIVAN@OFFICE.WANG.COM (Dan Sullivan) writes: > > >From: Dan Sullivan > In the last several days I have heard comments like the follwowing: >"The runways at Diego Garcia have been extended to support larger >aircraft" and "... B-52 launched from Diego Garcia" > I am confused. I thought Diego Garcia was a very small base that was >used as a listening post. What exactly is Diego Garcia? >thanks, in advance >dan sullivan As usual when the USAF takes over a base they make it a country club. The place now has three clubs, a olympic size swimming pool and a golf course. I was first there about 10 years ago when it as primarily run by the Navy. Then it was a small base mainly for communications support. I went back a few years ago for a few weeks on a contract my company had with the Navy, I flew in from Clark Airbase in the Philippines on a C-5 and went thru British immigration and customs. They run the island and while you are there you are under English law. Don't eat the crabs or mess with the cats that run wild all over the place. I spent most of my free time fishing and drinking at the merchant seamans club. The runways and facilities have been expanded to handle about any size plane. I saw several C-141's, C-130's and the C-5 that I flew in near the hangars. In the harbor I saw what looked like two big supply ships. I was told that they were full of tanks, ammo and supplies for the Rapid Deployment Force. The trip from the gulf from there is about two weeks (Once I took a USN supply ship from OMAN to Giego Garcia) so I would say heavy ground forces should be leaving the states about now to meet their equipment. -- Defend your 2nd amendment rights. Fred Brooks (503) 255-3990 Portland Oregon