NATO's Air War for Kosovo

NATO's Air War for Kosovo PDF

Author: Benjamin S. Lambeth

Publisher: Rand Corporation

Published: 2001-11-16

Total Pages: 323

ISBN-13: 0833032372

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This book offers a thorough appraisal of Operation Allied Force, NATO's 78-day air war to compel the president of Yugoslavia, Slobodan Milosevic, to end his campaign of ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. The author sheds light both on the operation's strengths and on its most salient weaknesses. He outlines the key highlights of the air war and examines the various factors that interacted to induce Milosevic to capitulate when he did. He then explores air power's most critical accomplishments in Operation Allied Force as well as the problems that hindered the operation both in its planning and in its execution. Finally, he assesses Operation Allied Force from a political and strategic perspective, calling attention to those issues that are likely to have the greatest bearing on future military policymaking. The book concludes that the air war, although by no means the only factor responsible for the allies' victory, certainly set the stage for Milosevic's surrender by making it clear that he had little to gain by holding out. It concludes that in the end, Operation Allied Force's most noteworthy distinction may lie in the fact that the allies prevailed despite the myriad impediments they faced.

The Future of NATO Airpower

The Future of NATO Airpower PDF

Author: Justin Bronk

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-05-31

Total Pages: 113

ISBN-13: 1000206580

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Airpower remains the cornerstone of NATO’s military advantage, so maintaining the ability to win air superiority over peer opponents in a conflict is key to long-term deterrence stability in both Europe and the Pacific. This Whitehall Paper examines the various modernisation and future capability development efforts being undertaken within NATO, and analyses the major threat systems and overall modernisation trends of the West’s main peer-competitors – Russia and China. US airpower capability development efforts are increasingly focused on countering the growing challenge from the Chinese military in the Pacific. To meet this challenge, the Pentagon is planning to transform the way it operates across all domains over the next 15 years. New platforms, weapons systems and increasing automation of command and control threaten to leave NATO allies behind. Current acquisition and modernisation plans of European air forces may eventually close the capability gap with current US theatre entry standard capabilities, but by then the US will have leapt ahead once more. Furthermore, many of the airpower capabilities which the US is pursuing for the Pacific theatre are significantly less relevant for the demands of deterrence against Russia in Europe. Given continuing dependence on US enablers on the part of other NATO members, a significant divergence in capability plans threatens to undermine crucial Alliance interoperability if not recognised and managed early.

Airpower Applied

Airpower Applied PDF

Author: John Andreas Olsen

Publisher: Naval Institute Press

Published: 2017-05-15

Total Pages: 424

ISBN-13: 1682470768

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Airpower Applied reviews the evolution of airpower and its impact on the history of warfare. Through a critical examination of twenty-nine case studies in which various U.S. coalitions and Israel played significant roles, this book offers perspectives on the political purpose, strategic meaning, and military importance of airpower. By comparing and contrasting more than seventy-five years of airpower experience in very different circumstances, readers can gain insight into present-day thinking on the use of airpower and on warfare. The authors, all experts in their fields, demystify some of airpower‘s strategic history by extracting the most useful teachings to help military professionals and political leaders understand what airpower has to offer as a “continuation of politics by other means.” The case studies emphasize the importance of connecting policy and airpower: operational effectiveness cannot substitute for poor statecraft. As the United States, its allies, and Israel have seen in their most recent applications of airpower, even the most robust and capable air weapon can never be more effective than the strategy and policy it is intended to support.

Precision and Purpose

Precision and Purpose PDF

Author: Karl P. Mueller

Publisher: Rand Corporation

Published: 2015-07-08

Total Pages: 467

ISBN-13: 0833088076

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A team of U.S. and international experts assesses the impact of various nations’ airpower efforts during the 2011 conflict in Libya, including NATO allies and non-NATO partners, and how their experiences offer guidance for future conflicts. In addition to the roles played by the United States, Britain and France, it examines the efforts of Italy, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Qatar, the UAE, and the Libyan rebels.

NATO Airpower

NATO Airpower PDF

Author: Willard E. Naslund

Publisher: Rand Corporation

Published: 1993

Total Pages: 49

ISBN-13: 9780833014740

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In the future, NATO forces must be prepared to respond quickly to events in regions within and beyond its borders. This research addresses how this requirement will affect the organization of NATO forces, particularly airpower, by postulating two scenarios that would stress NATO to the extreme: (1) an attack by Russia on Poland, and (2) a Syria-Iraq attack on Turkey. The author uses these scenarios to develop operational concepts and alternative organizations that would enable NATO airpower to adapt to the uncertain post-Cold War environment. The report concludes that NATO's air reaction forces should be fully established in peacetime, prepared for operations independent from existing command structures, and that the future viability of these forces depends primarily on U.S. contributions.

Freedom of the Skies

Freedom of the Skies PDF

Author: Peter R. March

Publisher: Burns & Oates

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 9780304352388

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"An illustrated narrative history of NATO airpower, from World War II vintage aircraft and the Berlin airlift to stealth bombers and peacekeeping in Bosnia. There are photographs from the archives of the major NATO airpowers, celebrating the men and aircraft that have kept the peace in Europe."

Politics of Compromise

Politics of Compromise PDF

Author: Arnold L. Tessmer

Publisher: DIANE Publishing

Published: 1995-09

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 9780788121548

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Detailed account of the debate on the Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) among NATO officials and the military and political issues accompanying this debate. Extensive bibliography. Index.

Operation Allied Force 1999

Operation Allied Force 1999 PDF

Author: Brian D. Laslie

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2024-06-20

Total Pages: 191

ISBN-13: 1472860314

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A focused, illustrated history and analysis of perhaps the most complete air power victory in modern times, NATO's war against Serbian forces over Kosovo. On the night of March 24, 1999, NATO forces began military action to stop Serbia's campaign of repression during the Kosovo War. Initially planned to be a 72-hour operation, it took 78 days of sustained air warfare for Operation Allied Force to cause Slobodan Milosevic to withdraw his forces. Despite such setbacks as the loss of an F-117 stealth fighter and the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Allied Force ended with perhaps the most complete airpower victory of modern times. However, there is a dearth of written histories on NATO's air war over Kosovo. In this book Dr Brian D. Laslie, one of the leading scholars of modern air power operations, offers a complete history of the campaign, based on a wide range of primary and secondary sources. Although predominantly a USAF effort, the campaign also featured multinational contributions as well as significant naval aviation. Using spectacular original battlescenes, maps and 3D diagrams, Dr Laslie examines the aircraft, weapons and doctrine used, the Serbian air defenses, how the Allied forces planned and launched their air campaign, and how NATO had to rapidly adapt its initial plans to achieve success.