dhows and small boats and, on March 17th, a large breakout consisting of sixty Iraqi watercraft attempted to evade Coalition units. With the vessels scattering in all directions, Adak, Wrangell, and their small boats, aided by other Coalition units, managed to corral all of the Iraqi watercraft and board them. None of the vessels carried escaping Iraqi leaders and all had discharged any illegal cargoes typical of small smuggling vessels. After boarding teams had thoroughly searched the dhows, Adak and the other patrol vessels allowed the watercraft to proceed along a specific route into the northern area of the Persian Gulf. In the early morning hours of March 20th, Coalition forces initiated combat operations with air attacks against key military targets in Baghdad. The Adak and Aquidneck enforced a security zone while the USS Higgins launched Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles into Iraq. In addition, Coalition forces had to secure Iraq's Khor al-Amaya Oil Terminal and Mina al Bakr Oil Terminal to prevent environmental attack by the Iraqi regime. On the evening of Marc 20thh, SEAL teams supported by Polish Special Forces personnel, stormed the oil facilities. During the operation, Adak, along with Baranof, maintained security around the terminals to prevent reinforcement or escape by Iraqi military forces. After the SEALs cleared the terminals of Iraqi personnel, weapons and explosives, Coast Guard personnel from Port Security Units 311 and 313 arrived to secure the facilities. Next Adak received orders to patrol the KAA Waterway, so by the early morning hours of March 21st, Adak had steamed up the KAA to serve as a guard ship. In fact, of the 146 Coalition naval units in the Persian Gulf, Adak stationed itself deepest in enemy territory and served as the "tip of the spear" for Coalition naval forces. During its early morning patrol, Adak and navy patrol surprised and stopped two down-bound Iraqi tugboats, including one towing a barge, and ordered them to anchor. At first, the vessels raised no suspicions for they ordinarily serviced tankers and smaller watercraft that plied local waters. But the two patrol vessels continued guarding the tugs and a special boarding team composed of Australian and American explosives experts searched the tugs and barge and found concealed within them a total of seventy contact and acoustic mines. Had they been released, the mines could have sunk or heavily damaged Coalition naval vessels operating in the Persian Gulf. The