On August 2nd, 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, the UN set a deadline for Iraq to leave Kuwait - January 15, 1991.
The next day, Operation Desert Storm started. On January 17th, 1991, at 2 am.m., the USS Midway sent planes from CVW-5 to start the first air strikes in the Gulf War. The first plane to fly over the coast was an A-6E TRAM Intruder from VA-185 "Nighthawks". About 17 other planes from the USS Midway also helped out during the strikes. Around 4:05 AM, four A-6E intruders from VA-185 and VA-115 "Eagles" attacked the Shaibah air base at around 350 feet, encountering intense anti-aircraft fire. Two of the aircraft didn't drop their bombs due to the heavy fire. At the same time, three more A-6Es from VA-115 loaded with six MK-83 bombs attacked Ahmad Al Jaber air base in occupied Kuwait. The intense anti-air fire at Shaibah caused the pilots of CVW-5 to avoid low-level attacks for the rest of the war. No one aircraft from the USS Midway was lost during the strikes. USS Midway launched a F/A-18 Hornet later and used the first Walleye TV-guided glide bomb in combat. It was from the Hornet of VFA-195 and destroyed a T-shaped building at the Umm Qasr naval base with a Walleye II. Later, during Operation Desert Storm, some CVW-5 F/A-18s tried to intercept Iraqi Mirage F-1s during an attack on Ras Tanura, which was shot down by RSAF F-15. Desert Storm ended on February 28th, and Midway left the Persian Gulf on March 11th, 1991 to return to Yokosuka. Order
Markings presented in this decal:
- F/A-18A Hornet, 162887/NF101, VFA-195 Dambusters, January 1991.
- F/A-18A Hornet, 162889/NF211, VFA-151 Vigilantes, January 1991.
- F/A-18A Hornet, 162882/NF310, VFA-192 Golden Dragons, January 1991.
- A-6E Intruder, 161233/NF406, VA-185 Nighthawks, January 1991.
- A-6E Intruder, 161661/NF501, VA-115 Eagles, January 1991.
- E-2C Hawkeye, 163026/NF601, WAV-115 Black Eagles, January 1991.
- EA-6B Prowler, 162229/NF604, VAQ-136 Gauntlets, January 1991.
- SH-3H Sea King, 154106/NF613, HS-12 Wyverns, January 1991.
