Versatility
The nature of the OIF air campaign changed quickly as the war progressed. We adjusted what we did, and what we carried, on the F-16CJ. We carried HARMs, CBU-103, GBU-31, and AGM-65D/G/H in a three-week period. Most of us had never seen, much less carried, live WCMDs or JDAMs. The 14th Fighter Squadron OIF ledger attests to this versatility, as we employed nearly seventy HARMs, about eighty CBU-103s, more than twenty JDAMs, about ten AGM-65s, and nearly 2,000 bullets.
     — Maj. Ken Ekman

Scratch One Seagoing Yacht
The Constellation became the night carrier; the crew had shifted their schedule twelve hours over the course of a week. We were in the Gulf on 19 March with the Lincoln and the Kitty Hawk, and our primary mission was passing gas. A section of S-3s would launch, tank the strikers, return to the boat, refuel, and meet the same customers coming back. We would drag them back to the boat.

On the sixth day of the war, the mission was to destroy the remaining Iraqi naval order of battle. The strike would be time-sensitive against emerging targets. They included Saddam's oceangoing yacht, which was essentially a medium-sized cruise ship. Laser Maverick [AGM-65E], which has a low CEP and low danger of collateral damage, was the weapon of choice.

The strike took place during the day in a low- to medium-threat environment. The target wasn't assigned on a whim. In training, we had demonstrated tactical proficiency before we had gotten there, mainly with SLAM-ER. Since the S-3B doesn't have a laser designator, it can't self-designate. On the mission, we carried a buddy store for refueling on the left pylon and the Maverick on the right.

We flew out with an F/A-18 and had to coordinate the buddy lasing on the fly. We also had to give the F/A-18 gas on the way in and on the way out.

We set up the attack on secure voice. After a couple of unsuccessful runs, we adjusted the shot geometry and the aim point. On the final run, we got a good spot and we fired the missile at 18,000 feet, 380 knots. The missile came in from above, impacted, and it fractured the hull. After that, the yacht became target practice for everybody in the area.

We had two hours to do all the planning. We received the tasking at 0245; launched at 0549 from the Constellation; found the target and fired at 0732. We trapped aboard CV-64 at 0853. I never saw a happier bunch of AOs than the ones on deck when we came back empty. The mission was the first time ever that an S-3 had attacked a target.
     — Lt. Cmdr. Dick McGrath