|
|
|
| Black Sheep over Baghdad |
Marc Poole
|
|
Acquisition Number: 2018.126.1
Medium: Oil on Canvas
On 10 April 2003, a Marine AV-8B Harrier II pilot releases a missile with great precision. According to the artist: “The day after U.S. Marines toppled the statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad, sporadic fighting still occurred throughout the city. VMA-214 pilots Major Mark Butler and his wingman, Captain Tyler Bardo, had just completed escorting a flight of helicopters when they were directed to contact the FAC (Forward Air Controller) from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion. They had been taking RPG and automatic gunfire from a clock tower all day, resulting in the death of 1 Marine. The FAC asked for a practice run to ensure that they were on target due to the number of friendlies in the area. After the practice run, Butler and Bardo lined up to make another run, with Butler releasing a laser-guided bomb. It was a direct hit at the base of the tower, but the bomb was a dud! Bardo carried a laser-guided Maverick missile, so they set up once more for another run. They kept the minimum 10,000-foot floor, with Butler providing the laser signature to the target for Bardo’s missile, but Bardo was unable to get a lock on the target on the 3d run, so they set up for a 4th, this time dropping below the floor to approximately 7,000 feet. Bardo was 4-5 miles from the target, heading northwest in the late afternoon when he fired his missile, and that is what I chose to depict.”
|
|
