# The Syrian Cruise missile attack pool **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 28, 2013, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391 "2013-08-28T12:32:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/1 "2013-08-28T12:32:53Z")
How many cruise missiles will the US launch during the first 24 hours of strikes against Syria? My guess: 115 Winner gets bragging rights! ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/2 "2013-08-28T13:02:35Z")
I don’t know, but I hope they have electronic ones that hit the electronic army because I’m seriously missing my morning NYTimes fix. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/3 "2013-08-28T13:55:46Z")
Seventy (70). ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/4 "2013-08-28T14:04:16Z")
1. And I predict any such attack will have no measurable effect on what’s happening in Syria. ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/5 "2013-08-28T14:31:44Z")
[Time Magazine](http://swampland.time.com/2013/08/28/attacking-syria-updating-the-desert-fox-blueprint/?iid=tsmodule) seems to have [Operation Desert Fox](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Iraq_(1998)) on its mind when thinking about what the possible U.S. strikes on Syria would look like. So let’s look at [Desert Fox](http://www.afhso.af.mil/topics/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=18632) and see what happened there. Per the last link, roughly 250 TLAMs were fired on the first night of the four days of strikes. The second night, the B-52s got in on it, firing 74 conventional ALCMs that night, 90 in total. Then again, we’d been bombing Iraq on average once every three days since the ceasefire ending Gulf War I and consequently had a lot of targets on our minds. Also, Iraq hadn’t had a massively destructive civil war, so a lot of the potential targets there were still intact, unlike Syria. OTOH, an invasion of Iraq I don’t think was on the table in 1998. Or maybe it was, I don’t know. Assuming it wasn’t, that takes off the plan a whole lot of targets you’d want to attack. Is an invasion of Syria in the works? Or a bunch of widely scattered USSOCOM raids of arms depots? Hard to secure and remove WMDs otherwise. There’s a lot of quite dangerous hardware around Syria that’ll need to be destroyed or otherwise neutralized if the U.S. wants to make sure the WMDs are gone. Stuff like [P-800](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-800_Oniks) anti-ship missiles. And [S-300](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S-300_(missile)) SAMs. Plus, there are a [few new delivery systems](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio-class_submarine#SSBN.2FSSGN_conversions) for cruise missiles that the various commanding officers would like to demonstrate. “Watch! As one submarine wipes out an entire country’s defense net, from 10 miles off shore, with zero warning!” “We’ll take four more, thanks.” So I’ll go with 154 (the number of cruise missiles thought to be carried by one Ohio-SSGN) + 16 (the number of [JASSM](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AGM-158_JASSM)s a B-2 can carry) + 48 more assorted TLAMs and others for shits and giggles. Or 218 total. How’s Lockheed Martin’s or General Dynamics’s stock doing today? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/6 "2013-08-28T15:13:58Z")
Put me down for an even 100. ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/7 "2013-08-28T15:48:37Z")
I’ll say the opening salvo is 75, and 3 salvos total. 200 missiles total. No boots on the ground, because Obama doesn’t have the genitals to do that. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/8 "2013-08-28T15:54:56Z")
I think we will “go light”…and see what the response is…maybe 20-30 to start? And they will hit childrens schools, hospitals, and old people’s homes. Guaranteed. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/9 "2013-08-28T15:57:24Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > I think we will “go light”…and see what the response is…maybe 20-30 to start? And they will hit childrens schools, hospitals, and old people’s homes. Guaranteed. Do children’s schools include orphanages? Because **they** always seem to be high priority targets. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/10 "2013-08-28T15:57:57Z")
> [@VunderBob](#): > > No boots on the ground, because Obama doesn’t have the genitals to do that. You mean he has the brains not to do that. ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/11 "2013-08-28T16:02:24Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > You mean he has the brains not to do that. If he had any brains, he’d stay out of it completely. ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/12 "2013-08-28T16:41:12Z")
I’ll go with 50 ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/13 "2013-08-28T20:18:33Z")
> [@VunderBob](#): > > If he had any brains, he’d stay out of it completely. If he had brains, he wouldn’t have made that stupid statement about “red lines” that is being used to rope him into action now. Put me down for 150 missles. And then the Obama Administration will pretend it accomplished something, and the news media will obediantly ignore the people who were killed in the missle strikes, 99% of whom will have had absolutely nothing to do with chemical weapons. ---
**Author:** ![Werekoala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7993a0/32.png) [@Werekoala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Werekoala)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/14 "2013-08-28T21:33:55Z")
125 - seems enough to do some damage without being accused of overkill. For bonus points, I’ll state the attacks will begin this Friday, say around 7-8pm EST. Nightime in Syria, long weekend in the US, nobody will be watching the news so the Administration will get credit for backing up their tough talk, but if anything goes tits up, nobody in the US will know about it for 3+ days. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/15 "2013-08-29T02:19:24Z")
> [@Werekoala](#): > > For bonus points, I’ll state the attacks will begin this Friday, say around 7-8pm EST. Nightime in Syria, long weekend in the US, nobody will be watching the news so the Administration will get credit for backing up their tough talk, but if anything goes tits up, nobody in the US will know about it for 3+ days. That may be too soon. They’re trying to go the UN route first. Will they meet before then? ---
**Author:** ![Werekoala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7993a0/32.png) [@Werekoala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Werekoala)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/16 "2013-08-29T02:22:23Z")
Well I heard the UN asked for them to wait 4 days, so that might be close enough. We might wait until Saturday 7-8pm EST to give the 4 days and still be deep in the long holiday weekend, so I might be off by 24 hours. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/17 "2013-08-29T02:40:11Z")
> [@Werekoala](#): > > Well I heard the UN asked for them to wait 4 days, so that might be close enough. We might wait until Saturday 7-8pm EST to give the 4 days and still be deep in the long holiday weekend, so I might be off by 24 hours. 🙂 I hope you’re off by 25 missiles too. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/43a26b/32.png) [@Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pine_Fresh_Scent)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/18 "2013-08-29T02:48:47Z")
What’s the highest bid, Bob? 218? Ok 219, Bob - whooo! ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/19 "2013-08-29T02:58:38Z")
I’ll take 220 then. ---
**Author:** ![Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/43a26b/32.png) [@Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pine_Fresh_Scent)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391/20 "2013-08-29T03:03:45Z")
Oh man, I really want that ceramic dalmatian! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-syrian-cruise-missile-attack-pool/667391.md?page=2)