200,000 Cheer Troops in O.C. Victory Parade : Celebration: Gulf veterans get a warm welcome home. Spectators view military might on land and in air.

With the peal of brass bands and the roar of jets, Orange County on Saturday welcomed home the troops of Operation Desert Storm with a victory parade that drew an estimated 200,000 flag-waving and cheering spectators.

As more than 3,000 Marines marched by in formation or rolled past atop burly tanks and assault vehicles, an enthusiastic crowd lining the tree-studded, 1.2-mile parade route showered the troops with applause, shouted thanks or chanted “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!”

Stretching along Alton Parkway at the southeast edge of the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, the parade marked the largest military celebration in Orange County since World War I, when 30,000 people--half the county at that time--turned out to welcome home soldiers who fought in that conflict.

“We just want to support these guys as much as we can,” shouted Fran Laughlin of Artesia, who wore a small American flag in her hair and clapped as the troops paraded by. “This is just an opportunity to tell all of them the way we feel.”

The Orange County celebration was one of many scattered across the country during the most emotional Armed Forces Day in many years, a panorama of parades, protests and small-town picnics that served to greet the returning veterans of the Persian Gulf War.

Officials estimated as many as 250,000 onlookers watched Marines from Camp Pendleton and other military units parade through downtown San Diego, where two people carrying a flag-draped coffin were escorted away by authorities. In San Francisco, demonstrators and war supporters exchanged sharp words and 12 people were arrested on misdemeanor charges ranging from throwing objects at police to climbing aboard military vehicles.

Such was not the case in Orange County. Dubbed “Operation Orange County Victory Parade,” the event had the look of a mile-long pep rally.

At some points along the route, spectators jumped under the yellow-ribbon barrier and ran out to shake hands with the troops passing by. Some of the troops aboard trucks and other vehicles cheered and waved right back. One Marine videotaped onlookers with his camcorder as his “humvee” rolled along the route.

Others dressed in full battle gear with assault rifles in hand veered to the edges of the road to clasp hands with spectators and share greetings.

Aside from the troops, mostly Marines drawn from the El Toro and Tustin bases, the event featured fireworks, F/A-18 jet fighters roaring overhead in formation and a fleet of patriotic-themed, giant hot-air balloons that floated precariously over the crowds in the stiff breezes.

The Orange County event marked the only West Coast parade appearance of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, an elite unit of bagpipe players who served with other British forces in Operation Desert Storm. High-school marching bands also joined the festivities, flanked by colorful floats decorated with flowers by community volunteers.

Among the troops marching in formation was Maj. Gen. Royal N. Moore Jr., commander of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and the top officer for Marine pilots during the Persian Gulf War. Brig. Gen. Harold W. Blot, commander at El Toro and other Marine Corps air bases in the western United States, also joined the procession.

Although organizers of the event had hoped for upwards of 500,000 spectators at the parade, police put the number at less than half that. Even then, some onlookers suggested that such estimates were decidedly optimistic. But organizers called the event an unqualified success.

“It was just really moving to see the way people expressed their appreciation for the troops,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Gaddi H. Vasquez, who spearheaded organization of the parade. “It was really a powerful statement of the support our military enjoy.”

Police reported no problems during the event other than a bit of snarled traffic in a few spots.

Instead, the fete was devoted to a sustained outpouring of patriotism, as everyone from grandmothers with “Welcome Home” banners to teen-agers clad in neon clothing with flags in hand tucked away any semblance of restraint and yelled their lungs out as the men and women in uniform marched by.

Ike Pacheco, an executive recruiter from Rancho Santa Margarita who came out for the event with his wife, Kellie, waved and shouted to each unit as it paraded past.

“Welcome home, guys!” he shouted. “Good job!”

Up on a camouflage-painted truck, one of the Marines gave the thumbs up and yelled back to Pacheco, “Thank you!”

“It makes me proud to be an American,” Pacheco said, turning away from the parade for a moment. “It’s a way to show respect, appreciation. It’s a bond we can share with these guys. I don’t know a single one and they don’t know me. But it’s a bonding.”

Back up the street, Chester Hall of Anaheim watched the parade with his 3-month-old son, Benjamin, in his arms.

“He was born Jan. 15, the last day of peace,” noted Hall, who has a brother and brother-in-law in the service and himself is studying to become a Navy chaplain. “We got home from the hospital at noon, and the war started at 4 p.m.”

Nearby, Gunnery Sgt. Les White sat with his buddy, Staff Sgt. Scott Engel. The pair returned from Saudi Arabia just about a month ago, but were not among the troops selected to march in the parade. For White, that was just fine.

“I’d rather watch it than ride in it anyway,” he confided. “I’ve been in a Mardi Gras parade, and that’s kind of hard to beat. But at least here the vast majority of people are sober!”

Like others along the route, White noted that the tremendous outpouring during the parade and other ceremonies like it across the country rekindled memories of the Vietnam years, when returning troops were sometimes jeered and harassed when they returned home.

“I think the country is very ashamed of the way it treated the Vietnam vets,” said Carla White, Les’ wife. “Now it’s almost reached the point of overkill. . . . Don’t misunderstand--we appreciate it. I was just afraid today’s soldiers might get the same treatment as during Vietnam.”

Larry (Bear) Hughes can understand such worries. He was an Army grunt in Vietnam, and his son, Larry Jr., served with the military in the Gulf War. So he wasn’t about to miss a chance to cheer on the troops at Saturday’s homecoming parade.

“As a Vietnam veteran, I’m very glad that people are standing behind this group,” said Hughes, a burly man who founded Brothers of Vietnam, a Southern California support group for veterans of the war in Southeast Asia. “But they should have done something like this 21 years ago.”

Most of the other spectators, of course, had few connections to the Gulf War other than what they saw on television. But they turned out nonetheless, eager to root for the service men and women who paraded by.

“I think this is a wonderful expression of patriotism,” said Earl Pedersen, a Leisure World resident. “This is a chance to express a feeling about our country, a sense of coming together.”

Landon Asbury, 10, and Ryan Dooley, 11, patrolled the parade route on their roller blades, but stopped to drape between them a large, blue blanket with the letters “U.S.A.” emblazoned in red.

“I’m proud of the troops,” said Ryan, an El Toro resident. “I know what they did for our country and I’m grateful for them.”

Linda Embry also held out a banner. “God Bless America, We Support Our U.S. Troops 100%,” it said.

The sister of four erstwhile military men, Embry had the banner specially made in September to show her support for the troops. She has displayed it on her Buena Park home ever since.

“This parade is something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time,” she said. “War is never good, but at least this one was swift. This is a happy parade. They deserve it.”

Mary Lou Teske of Irvine rode on her bike to the parade with friends Yvonne Freeman and Dale Graham, a Vietnam veteran.

“What does this make me feel? Goose bumps,” Teske said, holding out her arm to prove it. “It’s given people an opportunity to make up a little bit for what didn’t happen in Vietnam.”

Out on the pavement, most of the Marines marched past with eyes straight ahead, not breaking ranks, not even daring to smile.

But a few couldn’t resist a peek.

“I was supposed to be in squad and not look around, but I couldn’t help myself,” admitted Sgt. James Anderson, a Chicago native who served in Saudi Arabia during the war. “I was just too excited. I thought it was all pretty nice.”

Cpl. Joseph Mascarenaz, who spent eight months with the Marines in Saudi Arabia, agreed.

“I’ve got to tell you,” he said, “it was a nice feeling being able to see this sort of support from the American public.”

As Mascarenaz headed back to base on foot, a little girl stopped him and made a request usually reserved for a big-name sports hero or rock star. She asked him for his autograph.

The Marine gladly obliged, grabbing the pen and scrawling out a message: “Thanks for all your prayers and blessings.”

As he walked off, Mascarenaz smiled.

“It’s kind of neat,” he said. “I gotta admit it.”