Friday, Dec. 12, 2003 | 10:55 a.m.
Exploding missiles and the flash of anti-aircraft fire illuminated the wings of Capt. Scott Ulmer's F-16 as he flew over Baghdad on a mission that would become the most dangerous he's ever flown.
Dense fog and cloud cover forced Ulmer and his flight of four F-16s into the teeth of the Iraqi defenses as they drew enemy fire while high above Navy jets bombed targets. He flew on March 24, five days after the war in Iraq began.
"When we dropped below the clouds I could see a haze over Baghdad and lights underneath," Ulmer said. "Then I just saw the missiles launching and the flashes as they exploded in the air around us.
"It wasn't someplace you wanted to be for very long, when you look out and see that the missiles are getting close."
During five of the first seven days of fighting in Iraq, Ulmer found himself flying missions over Baghdad hunting radar-guided missile sites that can lock on to the bombers and other aircraft he was charged with protecting.
On two occasions, March 24 and March 27, Ulmer, who is now an instructor with the U.S. Weapons School at Nellis Air Base, flew into heavy enemy fire to complete his missions, military officials said.
That's why, last month, Ulmer, 31, was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses for heroism while flying. The medal is an honor that ranks above a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.
Bad weather plagued the air attacks over Iraq during the first week of the war, said Ulmer, who was flying with the 14th Fighter Squadron based in Misawa, Japan, when he was deployed to the Middle East in November 2002.
"Flying in the desert the one thing we thought we'd have is good weather," Ulmer said. "When you're flying at night and there is fog, clouds and sandstorms it's just one more thing to worry about.
"It's hard to see where the other planes are to keep from running into them."
The skies were crowded with U.S. aircraft, during the first weeks of the war, but Ulmer didn't get much time to look at the planes flying high over Iraq because he was called on to drop below the clouds where anti-aircraft gunners had a better chance of hitting him, he said.
On March 24 Ulmer and three other F-16s took off from Saudi Arabia and destroyed surface-to-air missile sites in Iraq, protecting Navy F-18s and F-14s that went on to drop bombs on Iraqi targets, military officials said.
The F-16s used missiles that were able to hone in on radar-guided missile systems when they tried to target other planes. During the attack Ulmer had to jettison his extra fuel tanks to get out of the area safely, he said.
"I was flying as fast as I could, and that lightened my load and made it a little easier to dodge the stuff they were shooting at us," Ulmer said. "There is some fear in that kind of situation, but you just focus on doing what you need to do.
"It definitely was not a normal day at the office."
When the group returned to Saudi Arabia after the mission, they talked for a couple hours and each had a non-alcoholic beer to try to wind down from the flight.
On March 27 Ulmer led another attack on surface-to-air missile sites and surface-to-surface missile systems, destroying a total of four weapons systems.
"We wanted to clear as much of that stuff out of the way as possible so that the Army didn't have to deal with it," Ulmer said.
Ulmer said he was surprised by the medals, and surprised that they were presented to him by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper.
"The biggest thing I was worried about was getting the other three guys flying with me home safely and completing our mission," Ulmer said. "It was great receiving the awards, but I was really happy that I was able to get home in time for the birth of my daughter.
"My wife was eight months pregnant when I got back and I felt very fortunate to be with her for the birth. A lot of the guys still over there are still sacrificing things like that."
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