1. Post-Cold War USAF Operations

2. Overview Background / Lessons Learned
Operations PROVIDE COMFORT/ NORTHERN WATCH
Operation SOUTHERN WATCH
Operations PROVIDE RELIEF / RESTORE HOPE
Operation DENY FLIGHT

3. The Crisis in Iraq
UN Security Council established a “no-fly zone” over northern Iraq to protect the Kurdish people from attacks by Saddam Hussein
Operation PROVIDE COMFORT began on
5 Apr 91 as a humanitarian relief effort to deliver food, clothing, and supplies to Iraq’s Kurdish refugees
C-130s began airdropping supplies on 7 Apr 91
Lasted approximately eight years and was then replaced by Operation NORTHERN WATCH

4. The Crisis in Iraq Lessons Learned - ONW
The need to avoid “Fratricide”
The limitations of airdrops
Host-country tensions
The need for alternate bases
Lack of an “exit strategy”

5. The Crisis in Iraq
Operation SOUTHERN WATCH (OSW) is a Combined Task Force enforcing the “no-fly zone” below the 33th parallel in southern Iraq
Not an aggression against Iraq – executed as a self-defense measure
Coalition partners include the US, UK, France, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait
More than 850 Iraqi SAM and AAA fire directed at coalition aircraft
Iraq has violated the “no-fly zone” more than 160 times
More than 150,000 USAF sorties by 1998

6. “What we’ve effectively done since 1992 is conduct an air occupation of a country…”
Gen Fogleman, Jul 1995

7. The Crisis in Iraq Lessons Learned - OSW
Became a test for USAF AEF concept in Oct 1995
Quality of life changes needed due to high “Ops-Tempo”
Reorganized Security Forces

8. The Crisis in Somalia
In-mid 1992, drought and civil war devastated Somalia
Food supplies became a weapon of war
Operation PROVIDE RELIEF began on
22 Aug 1992 by the US to deliver food to Somali refugees
Military and civilian aircraft used
Over 2,000 sorties, carrying 48,162 metric tons of food

9. The Crisis in Somalia Although a humanitarian effort:
44 American soldiers lost their lives
175 were injured or wounded
Danger of failure due to warlord interference
Operation RESTORE HOPE
Coalition peacekeeping operation from 9 Dec 92 –
4 May 93
First test of Rapid Global Mobility from the CONUS

10. The Crisis in Somalia Lessons Learned
First large scale test of newly formed AMC and the Tanker Airlift Control Center (TACC)
Difficulties evolved in the planning, coordinating and managing of the operation
Austere infrastructure of Somalia added to the lack of adequate bases for strategic airlift aircraft

11. The Crisis in Bosnia
Oct 1992, UN Security Council Resolution 781, established a no-fly zone over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Operation Deny Flight
Enforced the no-fly zone
Provided close air support to UN troops
Conducted approved air strikes under a "dual-key" command arrangement with the UN
28 Feb 94, NATO aircraft shot down four warplanes violating the no-fly zone over Bosnia-Herzegovina
This was the first military engagement ever undertaken by the Alliance.

12. The Crisis in Bosnia NATO objectives
Bosnian Serb compliance to cease attacks on Sarajevo and other safe areas
Withdrawal of Bosnian Serb heavy weapons from the total exclusion zone around Sarajevo
Complete freedom of movement for U.N. Forces and personnel, and non-government officials
Unrestricted use of Sarajevo airport

13. The Crisis in Bosnia NATO missions of Operation DENY FLIGHT
To conduct aerial monitoring and enforce compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 816
To provide close air support to UN troops on the ground at the request of, and controlled by, UN forces.
To conduct approved air strikes against designated targets threatening the security of the UN-declared safe areas.

14. The Crisis in Bosnia
Operation DENY FLIGHT lasted from 12 Apr 1993 to 20 Dec 1995
Almost 100,000 sorties flown
A formal closure ceremony was held in Vicenza, Italy on 21 Dec 1995
Forces associated with Operation DENY FLIGHT were then transferred to Operation DECISIVE ENDEAVOR -- as part of the overall NATO Operation JOINT ENDEAVOR.

15. The Crisis in Bosnia Lessons Learned
Lack of doctrine
Tactical air and space power problems
Bases weren’t large enough to accept the contingency surges
Coalition/Joint problems
Technological problems

16. Summary Iraq Somalia Bosnia Operations PROVIDE COMFORT /
NORTHERN WATCH
Operation SOUTHERN WATCH
Somalia
Operations PROVIDE RELIEF/RESTORE HOPE
Bosnia
Operation DENY FLIGHT

17. Don’t repeat the past! AIRPOWER!!!!!