The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent agency that works for Congress. The GAO watches over Congress, and investigates how the federal government spends taxpayers dollars. The Comptroller General of the United States is the leader of the GAO, and is appointed to a 15-year term by the U.S. President. The GAO wants to support Congress, while at the same time doing right by the citizens of the United States. They audit, investigate, perform analyses, issue legal decisions and report anything that the government is doing. This is one of their reports.

Operation Desert Storm was primarily a sustained 43-day air campaign by the U.S. and its allies against Iraq between Jan. 17, 1991, and Feb. 28, 1991. It was the first large employment of U.S. air power since the Vietnam War, and by some measures, it was the most successful war fought by the U.S. in the 20th century. The main ground campaign occupied only the final 100 hours of the war. This report is a comprehensive evaluation of the use and effectiveness of the various aircraft, munitions, and other weapon systems used in this victorious air campaign.

This is the unclassified version of a classified report; 85% of the original classified material is presented in this report. Addresses: the use and performance of aircraft, munitions, and missiles employed during the air campaign; the validity of DoD and manufacturer claims about weapon systems' performance, particularly those systems utilizing advanced technology; the relationship between cost and performance of weapon systems; and the extent that air campaign objectives were met. Discusses: LGB accuracy, F-117 and TLAM effectiveness, IADS capabilities, target sensor technologies, combat support platforms, and more.