An outbreak of foodborne gastroenteritis affected 648 United States Air Force personnel stationed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm. The implicated food source was a locally catered meal. Despite the presence of an aggressive Air Force public health program, foodborne illness had a major impact on manpower and medical resources during a critical phase of military operations. It is the recommendation of the authors that the Air Force not rely on local caterers during future deployments.