"THE MISSION" : < What has been done (already) to accomplish "the mission"? >

Soldiers of the world, if able, would benefit from the ability to reduce the amount of equipment needed to survive in various warfare environments; such as Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological attacks.

The bulkiest of this equipment would be the MOPP gear. This stands for Mission Oriented Protective Posture, or "MOPP".

The four levels include a Gas-Mask, Footgear, Gloves, and a Body-Suit.

Each article requires extensive maintenance and training to be used effectively.

In some instances however, the Bio-Chemical being used may penetrate this line of defense.

This is a real threat to the accomplishment of a mission if troops cannot operate in certain environments. All an opposing force would have to do to deny terrain or equipment from capture is spray it with a Bio-Chemical to make it useless and inaccessible to less prepared troops.

Therefore, an internal protection, or "ANTIDOTE", would be highly advantageous. If this antidote is used in combination with an agent that will penetrate all other defenses the enemy has, it can also be used effectively as an OFFENSIVE WEAPON. Attacks with this "agent", followed by an attack of "prepared" troops, unhampered by extra (MOPP) gear, into affected areas, would ensure victory in all circumstances.

If an enemy were to be attacked, simply line up prepared soldiers in usual gear (instead of in MOPP Suits) on the border of the soon to be invaded territory, and send aircraft to spray the areas ahead with a penetrating agent. Following this spraying, the prepared troops enter the area with no opposition and claim the properties.

To enable this to happen, research and development of new technology would have to be done. This experimentation, while having a beneficial outcome for soldiers in the end, would lead to quite hazardous conditions for those IN THE TRIAL RUNS ! 

As has been said - this story is both fictional and FACTUAL. All that remains to be done to make this scenario a reality is for Governments of the world to ADMIT to what has ALREADY HAPPENED TO TROOPS, on very recent battlefields of the world !     <Gulf War>

Mission:

An Apache Helicopter hovers over the tree-tops several miles away from a "secret" jungle headquarters. Inside, the pilot watches his gauges on the dash; among them is a television screen. It is divided into four parts. Two sections show a view to the left and right, showing nothing but the night sky. The view ahead shows the heat signatures of about thirty ground-troops and vehicles moving quietly around under tree cover in the camp.

On his dash, a light changes color from Red to Amber. He reacts by pushing a button to activate his laser-guidance system. The rocket launchers on the side of the helicopter now have seen their target - the encampment ahead. This button also sends a message to the occupant of the fourth part of his screen; a Huey UH-1 Troop-Carrier, hovering about a mile behind the Apache near the tree-tops.

Neither chopper is seen or heard by their intended victims.

Inside the Huey, six men wait. They wear only combat fatigues and camouflage paint, besides their usual gear and weapons. A light turns from Red to Amber inside their compartment, as well as in the front where the pilot can see it. All six men, along with the two pilots reach into their pockets and withdraw a small blister packet. Each takes one pill from this packet and swallows it.

The pilot of the Huey checks to see if all passengers have taken their pill, then signals the Apache pilot with another pushed button on his dash. The Amber light turns Green in the Apache. The pilot reaches for the Fire Control Switch and releases two missiles toward the camp. He watches their trajectories, guiding them into an exact location. They land, and explode with a DULL THUD; almost a popping noise.

The Apache pilot waits, watching the heat signatures on the screen. On the ground near where the missiles have landed, the grass is withering. As the effect spreads further from the impact area, troops are seen to fall over, holding their throats and gasping for breath. This effect spreads to the area used by the troops. Eventually, the heat signatures on the screen in the Apache are reduced to the point that they no longer register as active, or ALIVE.

When the last heat signature/mark fades from his screen, the Apache pilot hits another button, sending a message to the Huey (indicating) that this part of the mission is done and there are no ground troops registering as alive in the camp. This done, the Apache helicopter swings into an arc and leaves the area silently.

In the Huey, the Amber light turns Green, and the pilot starts his run on the camp. The men in the back see the light change and begin to ready their ropes for the decent. The chopper is over the camp in minutes. It then descends to about fifty feet, allowing the troops to rappel out. Once on the ground, they signal the Huey to leave. It does, and the troops proceed to enter the camp.

All around them, the destructive force of the two missiles can be seen. The plants near the impact site are brown and burnt looking. The troops they find are in contorted positions, suggesting that their deaths were anything but pleasant. The troops walk around in this devastation with no protective gear or masks, BECAUSE - they are protected from within.

Once they arrive at the main tent, they enter to find two people fallen over on a table. On that table, there are various maps of the surrounding terrain, as well as plans for their next actions to come. These were the leaders of the group in the encampment, obviously talking about what they would do next. The invaders stride over to the table and remove the papers. Some have to be pried from the lifeless hands of the two dead leaders. 

When this is accomplished, the leader of the invaders takes out a small radio and signals the Huey to do a run and pick them up. All of this has occurred within about fifteen minutes.

When the Huey lands, the men get back in and store their gear in airtight bags to reduce the possibility of contamination of other personnel who have not taken "the pill". 

When the helicopter arrives back at base, it will have to be decontaminated along with the gear worn. The papers will be copied, the originals destroyed for the same reason.

THE MISSION IS A SUCCESS.

Once looked at in this light, it can be quite clear what recent events and experiments on troops would lead to such advancements in BIO-CHEMICAL WARFARE "defenses", from within. It is a sobering idea to be faced by an enemy capable of such destruction, invisibly, quietly, especially one with no qualms about using all powers at their disposal.

Lets hope the world learns from its mistakes, before it happens AGAIN, this time closer to HOME.

It happened in 1991 - time enough to learn!