Painted Horse

Factions| * G.I. Joe

Commanders| * Duke

Combatants| * Beach Head
* Flint
* Torpedo

Casualties| * None

## [Source]

"*After action report classification ultra-ultra. Operation designate: Painted Horse.*"
—Duke[src]
Operation designate **Painted Horse** was a G.I. Joe mission. G.I. Joe obtained intelligence that an illegal weapons shipment was due to be transported to the United States of America from Istanbul. A Joe team led by Duke was deployed to intercept and destroy the shipment aboard the cargo container ship *Benin Pearl*. Facing off against members of the Zogc Militia, the *Benin Pearl* was destroyed by one of the criminals using a Stinger missile that detonated the arms shipment belowdecks.

## History

### Prelude

"*Mission intel reached The Pit less than six hours prior to kick-off. This operation was run on rough guesstimates and urgent need. We went with what we had.*"
—Duke[src]
Nico Mandirobilis was contracted by M.A.R.S. Industries to smuggle an illegal weapons shipment from Istanbul, Turkey to Tampa in the United States of America aboard the cargo container ship *Benin Pearl*. Mandirobilis only provided shipment for the arms, supplying forged end-user paperwork and dummy manifests. The Zogc Militia were contracted to carry out actual replacement of goods in sealed ISO containers.

Intelligence regarding the shipment reached G.I. Joe headquarters, The Pit, less than six hours prior to its undertaking. Based on rough guesstimates and urgent need, a four-man Joe team led by Duke and comprising Beach Head, Flint, and Torpedo were deployed to Istanbul. As Turkey was a NATO member, the mission was off-the-books with the intention being a non-lethal resolution and destruction of the illegal weapons.

### Operation

"*Cargo aboard has been cleared for transship to Port of Tampa by U.S. Customs. But you can still open an iso container's doors without breaking the seal.*"
—Duke[src]
The Joe team made a stealth insertion into the Hayadarpasa Ltd Shipping Yard in Istanbul via Zodiac at 0100 GMT. Duke took point and boarded the *Benin Pearl* where the Zogc Militia were removing the doors from ISO containers that had already been cleared by U.S. Customs and replacing the contents with an arms shipment. Officially, the contents of the containers were toys manufactured in Ceylon.

The Joe team deployed XM-84 Stun Grenades and the element of surprise to subdue the militia onboard the *Benin Pearl*. The intention was then to destroy the arms with thermite. However, one member of the militia avoided being subdued and, armed with a Stinger, launched a missile into the hold of the freighter. The missile detonated the high explosives below decks, destroying the freighter. The Joe team was able to evacuate from the freighter before the secondary explosions that sunk the freighter and returned to the Zodiac.

Duke managed to bring aboard a mortally wounded member of the militia and convinced him to give up a lead on the weapons shipment. Before dying, the insurgent whispered one word: "Cobra."

### Aftermath

"*There's been a spike in background noise mentioning Cobra. I need to know who or what Cobra is. Is it a person? Is it code for terror operation? Our first firm link to Cobra is the gun smuggling op your team broke up.*"
—Hawk[src]
In the aftermath of the operation, General Hawk assigned Duke to work with Scarlett to find out who or what "Cobra" was. With increased mentions of "Cobra" in intercepted communications, Hawk needed to know as much about Cobra as possible. As a result of this operation, James McCullen put a plan into motion to pay back the agency responsible for the loss of his weapons by shipping a cargo of spider-bots aboard the *Badeaux Strait*. The spider-bots were used to massacre the crew and the cargo was retrieved by the G.I. Joe team and taken to their headquarters.

## Appearances

* *G.I. Joe #0*: "One Word" (First appearance)
* *G.I. Joe #1* (Mentioned only)
* *G.I. Joe #2* (Indirect mention only)
* *G.I. Joe #5* (Mentioned only)

## Notes and references

1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 *G.I. Joe #0*: "One Word"
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 *G.I. Joe #1*
3. ↑ *G.I. Joe #2*