US Mistakes Celebration for Attacks

AP ^ | 12/18/01 | By DOUG MELLGREN, Associated Press Writer

[Jersey Kid]

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (news - web sites) (AP) - Two U.S. transport planes on a nighttime flight saw muzzle flashes from celebrating Afghans firing their weapons and mistook them for missile attacks Tuesday, taking evasive action, military officials said. Initially, a Marine spokesman at Kandahar airport, Capt. David Romley, initially said the C-130s came under fire, possibly from shoulder-fired Stinger missiles of the type provided by the United States in abundance to Afghan militias fighting the Soviet occupation in the 1980s. But at Central Command headquarters in Tampa, Fla., spokesman Maj. Ralph Mills said it later was determined that the crew had seen muzzle flashes that ``were part of an end of Ramadan celebration.'' ``They probably saw some arms being fired off, but that's not uncommon'' during the Eid al-Fitr celebration marking the end of the Muslim holy month, Mills said. The planes were departing from the Marine base at Kandahar, he said. Romley said the two separate incidents occurred 30 minutes apart, starting at 2:30 a.m. over the desert south of Kandahar. The two C130s fired flares and took other action to evade approaching missiles but reported to their base that the aircraft suffered no damage or injuries to the crew, Romley said. Romley indicated they were on reconnaissance missions. ``We do have forces that do provide reconnaissance, including airborne reconnaissance, in the area,'' he told reporters at Kandahar airport. The Marines moved the bulk of their operations in Afghanistan from the desert airstrip dubbed Camp Rhino to Kandahar's derelict international airport on Friday after Taliban forces fled. In the early days of the U.S.-led war, American planes targeted Afghan antiaircraft batteries to ensure unhindered control of the skies. But the stingers are shoulder-fired missiles used by foot soldiers and easily evaded.