People: Richard Wright
RICHARD WRIGHT: NO DEEP COVER FOR SADDAM
During the Gulf War, the U.S. military could not penetrate Saddam Hussein's reinforced bunkers with traditional bombs, which could pierce only up to six feet of concrete. The problem was eventually solved by the GBU-28, a laser- guided bomb capable of penetrating 20 feet of concrete or 100 feet of dirt before delivering its payload.
An unsung hero, Maj. Richard L. Wright, Jr., '79, made it happen. While at Eglin AFB, Florida, he was put in charge of the 'mission impossible.' 'An engineer in the laboratory came up with the idea,' Wright recalls. 'It was on January 25th. In 30 days we built it and shipped it to Saudi Arabia. I don't know if that's a record, but I know of no weapon system that has been designed and implemented with such quantum speed.'
The Wright team used no new technology or funds, just Yankee ingenuity. They built their bomb using discarded artillery guns, for example. 'We ought to get an enviromental recycling award,' muses Dick.
The weapon was promptly put use and worked as planned, destroying seemingly impregnable Iraqui command centers near Baghdad. 'We didn't know it could be done until we were pressed,' he says. 'It was miraculous how everything came together.'
After MSU, which he calls 'a very memorable experience,' Dick worked at Wright-Patterson AFB and earned an advanced degree. 'For years the media has beat up on us, that weapons cost too much,' he says. 'The Gulf War proved them wrong. The money we spent helped save American lives. The high-tech equipment worked even better than expected.'
He is currently stationed at Fort Belvoir, VA, and ironically, has been taking classes at Capitol Hill on how to buy weapons systems. 'It's kind of comical,' he admits. 'During the war, we threw the book out. There wasn't any time. Now they're teaching me how to do it according to the book.'
