During the Persian Gulf War, dramatic images of missiles bursting in air flooded American homes through their television sets. Americans were told by the media that the video footage depicted Patriot missiles destroying Iraqi Scuds. Official Army, Raytheon and Administration statements confirmed that the Patriots had destroyed almost every incoming Scud.
However, most of the illuminations in the sky were not caused by Patriots directly hitting incoming Scuds and destroying them, but by proximity fuzes that were programmed to explode as the Patriot neared a Scud, by the missile automatically self-destructing after missing a Scud, or by Patriots flying after false targets.
However, most of the illuminations in the sky were not caused by Patriots directly hitting incoming Scuds and destroying them, but by proximity fuzes that were programmed to explode as the Patriot neared a Scud, by the missile automatically self-destructing after missing a Scud, or by Patriots flying after false targets.