“When United States and coalition forces invaded Iraq in 2003 [during Operation Iraqi Freedom], they faced no Iraqi Air Force opposition.…
Military Aviation
Tag:
Operation Iraqi Freedom
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Military Aviation
Here’s why the Canberra PR 9 had been the best reconnaissance aircraft during early operations in Enduring and Iraqi Freedom
by Dario LeoneBoasting a range of nearly 2000 nautical miles, the aircraft was unique, as no other reconnaissance platform could carry four different…
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Cold War EraMilitary AviationU.S. Navy
Tomcat finale: the last ever carrier ops of the original F-14A model and why the Fighting Checkmates are the US Navy’s last and only fighter squadron
by Dario LeoneVF-211 would make its final Tomcat trap and catapult launch on May 20, 2004 as USS Enterprise conducted local operations off…
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Military Aviation
How two VMA-214 AV-8B Harrier pilots helped Marines to win the battle for Saddam Hussein’s Azimiyah Palace and Imam Abu Hanifah Mosque during OIF
by Dario Leone‘I kept thinking to myself, ‘Don’t fuck this up, centre the pipper, keep it slewed on the target,’ Maj Mark Butler,…
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Military Aviation
USMC Hornet Pilot Tells the Story of a Joint F/A-18 – B-1B OIF Sortie Aimed at Eliminating Saddam Hussein
by Dario Leone`Within five minutes of us hitting Saddam’s palace, the B-1 had dropped his JDAM on the restaurant, which was only five…
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Military Aviation
USMC F/A-18D Hornet Pilot Tells the Story of a Tense ATARS Mission aimed to Find a Missing IrAF MiG-25 Foxbat few days before the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom
by Dario Leone“The target area was extremely quiet — almost too quiet for a suspected landing site of a valuable MiG-25 fighter. We…
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Military Aviation
First Final Flight for Compass Call: USAF Retires its first Specially Modified EC-130H Aircraft
On Mar. 19, 1982, the first specially modified EC-130H “Compass Call” aircraft, tail number 1587, arrived at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base,…
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Military AviationU.S. Navy
Famed Naval Aviator Vincent “Jell-O” Aiello tells the story of one of the final U.S. Air Strikes of the 20th Century
by Edward ChangJoin Vincent “Jell-O” Aiello as he re-lives an air strike in the Iraqi no-fly zone at the turn of the millennium.…
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Losses and Aviation SafetyMilitary Aviation
The Story of Kim Campbell, the Heroic Female A-10 Pilot who Landed Her Damaged Warthog Using Only ‘Cranks and Cables’
by Dario Leone“I am incredibly thankful to those who designed and built the A-10 as well as the maintainers who did their part…
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Aircraft CarriersAviation HistoryMilitary Aviation
“Abe’s” Extraordinary Odyssey: The Story of the Longest Deployment for an Aircraft Carrier in Post-Vietnam Military History
by Edward Chang17 years ago, USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) embarked on the longest deployment for an aircraft carrier in post-Vietnam military history. On…
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