On June 26 , 1996 , the Khobar Tower , which was being used as a facility to house U.S. and Coalition forces engaged in Operation Southern Watch ( a no-fly zone operation over southern Iraq ) , was bombed by terrorists belonging to Hezbollah Al-Hejaz , resulting in 19 deaths of American airmen and injuries to 472 people . This event is known as the Khobar Towers bombing . As a member of a deployed fighter wing , Hampton was residing in the building at the time and was subsequently injured from the attack . An excerpt from his book '' Viper Pilot '' says , " Twenty-five thousand pounds of TNT had been packed into a sewage service tanker trunk and driven up to the perimeter ... all the compound lights were out ... dust hung in the air , buildings were burning , people were running , and there was lots of shouting " . There is speculation that the attacks could have been prevented if better security measures had been implemented
Khobar Towers bombing
Khobar Towers bombing
Dan "Two Dogs" Hampton