Aviation Week & Space Technology
May 10, 1999
Pg. 37

Sustained Carrier Raids Demonstrate New Strike Tactics

By Robert Wall/On Board The USS Theodore Roosevelt

U.S. attacks from the USS Theodore Roosevelt against Yugoslav targets are being conducted at a moderate pace, but nonetheless are allowing the Navy to showcase some new operational techniques.

Although NATO says it is continuously intensifying the air campaign--with more than 600 missions flown daily--many air assets continue to be used below their peak capability. Military planners at the Combined Air Operations Center in Vincenza, Italy, have, for example, assigned the USS Theodore Roosevelt only enough missions for 10-14 hr. of daily flight operations. Only about 70 missions are being launched daily, which include some air-to-air training flights to keep F-14 and F/A-18 crews qualified.

The aircraft carrier arrived in the Ionian Sea south of Italy on Apr. 6, and since then has operated at a constant level of around 70 sorties per day. "This is a marathon, not a speed race," said Capt. David R. Bryant, the aircraft carrier's commanding officer. "We want to do something we can do week-in, week-out, without burning our people out and using up our aircraft availability."

To support the continuity of the missions, the Navy decided to augment its force of four EA-6B Prowlers with one aircraft, raising the size of the carrier air wing to 72 aircraft. The fifth Prowler is supposed to ensure that at least four aircraft are continuously ready to support strike operations, even if one is in maintenance, said an EA-6B operator, who couldn't be fully identified because of NATO media restrictions.

The carrier-based EA-6Bs are using a somewhat different operational scheme than their land-based counterparts flying out of Aviano AB, Italy. The land-based EA-6Bs are tied directly to strike packages, whereas the ship-based Prowlers mainly jam an area within which different strike packages can operate. Most EA-6B missions from the carrier support F-14 and F/A-18 raids.

One EA-6B operator on board the carrier said crews worry more about the Yugoslav SAN-4 ship-based air-defense system than their land-based counterparts. It has a maximum speed of Mach 2.5 and a range of at least 10 mi.

SA-3 and SA-6 surface-to-air missile sites are a primary target for all Prowlers in Operation Allied Force. EA-6Bs from the carrier are mostly operating with two Harm anti-radar missiles. Aviano's Prowlers have a longer route to their target, so they are flying mainly with only one Harm to conserve fuel.

For the USS Theodore Roosevelt, this is the first conflict since the Navy retired its ES-3 Shadow intelligence-gathering aircraft last year. So far, that hasn't presented a problem, Navy officials said. "There are a lot of assets in theater that perform that mission right now," said Capt. Dale E. Lyle, commander of carrier Air Wing Eight. They include the Air Force's RC-135 Rivet Joint and the Navy's land-based EP-3 signals-intelligence-gathering aircraft. He acknowledged, though, that "it certainly is a loss of capability" that could be more noticeable in other scenarios.

An unusual arrangement in this air campaign is the use of the F-14s as airborne Forward Air Controllers (FAC). The two-seat F-14s are acting as fast FACs primarily for other F-14s and single-seat F/A-18s. All F-14s are operating with the Lantirn targeting system, which is one of the capabilities that is allowing them to perform the FAC mission. Another novelty of this campaign is the use of E-2C airborne early warning aircraft as battle management systems (see p. 38).

The F/A-18s operate with the smaller, Nite Hawk targeting pod. Early in the conflict, Navy strike packages flew mostly stand-alone missions, but recently "we've been integrating more with NATO assets," an F/A-18 pilot said. Most targets are being attacked by laser-guided bombs. But "there are some more open targets where we use bombs that are not precision-guided," Bryant said. The Navy has also been using the AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon. The munition was delivered to the USS Theodore Roosevelt only after it left for the Adriatic, with stocks coming from the U.S. and the USS Enterprise. Pilots had undergone training with the weapon prior to the deployment. Additionally, strikes are being conducted with Maverick missiles, most of which are laser-guided versions.

The carrier aircraft have fired a large number of Harm missiles, to react to active radars and, preemptively, to dissuade Yugoslav air defense operators from turning on their radars. In fact, the carrier has already had to replenish some weapons stocks, including Harms. Some inert weapons that would have been used for training were removed to make room for more live ordnance.

Two weapons that haven't been used to date are the Slam-ER standoff missile and the Tactical Air Launched Decoy. A Navy official said so far the Navy aircraft haven't had a need to use Slam-ER because they have been able to engage targets with laser-guided bombs or other weapons. The decoy, which is intended to fool air defense operators, is unlikely to be used. The Navy official indicated that surface-to-air missile operators have learned to recognize the decoys for what they are.

Operating from the Ionian Sea is keeping the carrier out of the immediate threat of Yugoslav ground- and ship-launched anti-ship missiles. Those threats are very similar to what the carrier was expecting to face in the Persian Gulf, where the carrier battle group was supposed to deploy before Operation Allied Force began.

U.S. Navy officials are very aware that the Roosevelt's operations are being monitored by a Russian intelligence ship. On at least one occasion, the Russian ship has come within 6 naut. mi. of the U.S. carrier. But Bryant expressed little concern about the situation. "Any Russian ships, any other ships in the area, have as much right to be here in international waters as we do."

One of the greatest challenges for crews early on was making the transition from anticipated Persian Gulf operations to flying missions over Yugoslavia. "It was hectic," said one EA-6B operator. Although Iraq and Yugoslavia operate similar air-defense hardware, air crews had to read up on Yugoslav air defense tactics.