Operation Deliberate Force
US Air Force F-16C Fighting Falcon during operation
| date | August 30th to September 20th, 1995 |
|---|---|
| place | Republika Srpska , Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| output | NATO achieves its mission objectives |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
|
Willy Claes |
|
| Troop strength | |
| 400 planes | 80,000 soldiers |
| losses | |
|
1 Mirage fighter |
not specified |
The Operation Deliberate Force was a military company of NATO on behalf of the UN to threats to members of the UNPROFOR troupe and the inhabitants of the UN protected zones by the Bosnian Serb army in Bosnia and Herzegovina to stop and prevent it. The operation was carried out mainly by aircraft from several NATO members between August 30, 1995 and September 20, 1995.
prehistory
NATO's air operations in Bosnia began in October 1992 to monitor ( Operation Sky Monitor ) and enforce ( Operation Deny Flight ) the no-fly zone over Bosnia-Herzegovina. Between April 12, 1993 and the beginning of March 1995, NATO flew 52,000 sorties in Bosnia-Herzegovina . These operations in support of UNPROFOR (United Nations Protection Forces), the monitoring of the military flight ban over Bosnia and the airlift in support of the civilian population in Sarajevo since the summer of 1992 can definitely be classified as successful. But in November 1994 the Serbs launched an offensive against the UN protection zone of Bihać for the first time . Around 400 UNPROFOR soldiers and UN observers were taken hostage in May. On July 12, 1995, Serbs overran the Srebrenica protection zone and on July 19, Žepa . The result was mass shootings and so-called “ethnic cleansing” among the Bosniak population ( Srebrenica massacre ). After a bloody grenade attack on a market in Sarajevo on August 28, 1995 ( Markale massacre ), UN Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali threatened massive air strikes against the Bosnian Serbs. The US Admiral Leighton W. Smith, NATO commander of Allied Forces Southern Europe (CINCSOUTH), together with the British commander of the UNPROFOR units, Lt. General Rupert Smith, prepared measures for an air operation.
Course of the operation
The operation was conducted jointly by NATO and the UN as part of a "dual-key" process. Both sides had to agree to the respective goals. There were daily and weekly coordination meetings.
Operation “Deliberate Force” began on August 30, 1995 against targets in Sarajevo , Pale , Tuzla and Goražde . The aim was to shut down the Serbian-Bosnian command structures, ammunition depots, barracks, strategically important bridges and air defense positions.
5,000 soldiers from 15 countries with 400 aircraft, including 222 combat aircraft, took part. The planes took off around the clock from three aircraft carriers and 18 air force bases in Europe, 40 percent of them from the Aviano air force base in Italy.
US warships fired 13 BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles and destroyed the headquarters of the Bosnian Serb Army near Banja Luka . Eight nations took part in the air operation and by September 14, 1995 they had flown over 3,500 sorties. 14 German tornado fighter planes flew 65 sorties from Piacenza .
On August 30, 1995, a French Dassault Mirage 2000K fighter aircraft near Pale was shot down by an anti-aircraft missile and the pilots saved themselves. During the NATO air strikes 1,026 bombs were dropped and 386 enemy targets were attacked.
After the Serbs had withdrawn their heavy weapons and a guarantee for the remaining protection zones, the air operation was ended on September 21, 1995. At the same time, the Serbs in the " Republic of Krajina " suffered a heavy defeat by the Croatian army, while an offensive by the Bosnian government troops was launched. The result of the massive air strikes in connection with the Croatian and Bosnian ground offensives was the Dayton Treaty of December 14, 1995.
Emergency aircraft
German participation
The German participation in UNPROFOR in Bosnia-Herzegovina began on August 8, 1995. Due to the increasing danger for the blue helmet soldiers, the United Nations dispatched the “Rapid Task Force” based on Security Council resolution 988 of June 16, 1995. The German Bundestag voted on June 30, 1995 with 386 out of 637 members for German participation. A field hospital and two rescue centers for the army , twelve Transall and 14 tornadoes for the Luftwaffe were planned . The Marine stood next two reconnaissance aircraft Bréguet Atlantic a mine countermeasures - and a speedboat Association prepared, of which only the reconnaissance aircraft were retrieved. National commander and commander of the 1st German Contingent (GECONUNPF) with 531 soldiers was Colonel Hans-Heinrich Dieter from July 24 to December 7, 1995 . The deployment of the Bundeswehr ended with the assumption of responsibility by NATO and the formation of the Peace Implementation Forces (IFOR) .
particularities
- The first air operation with the predominant use of precision-guided weapons (69%)
- First Tomahawk cruise missile deployment in Europe
- USAF F-16s first sustained mixed use of GBU-12 Paveway and GBU-24 laser-guided precision bombs .
- First sustained use of GBU-15 electro-optically controlled precision bombs by F-15E
- First use of AGM-88 HARM (High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile) by F-16 of the USAF in action against radar systems.
- First use of the Predator reconnaissance drone by the USAF
- First combat mission by the German Air Force since World War II
- First combat deployment of the Spanish Air Force since the end of the Franco dictatorship
- First involvement of the Italian Air Force in a NATO Deny Flight operation
- The French Mirage 2000D / K and the SEPECAT Jaguar from Matra are in action for the first time
One of the most important tasks of the non-American allies was aerial reconnaissance. Dutch and Turkish F-16s, French Mirages, British Jaguars, Spanish F / A-18s and German tornadoes were used. The USAF used the Lockheed U-2 R and unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. Individual allies had political problems with the common goals. Italy refused to station F-117 stealth bombers on the US air force base in Aviano .
literature
- David Rezac: Military Intervention as a Problem of International Law in: Studies and Reports on Security Policy
Web links
- Summary of: The role of NATO in the Southeast European crisis area from “Yearbook for International Security Policy 1999” ( ISBN 3-8132-0599-1 ), Verlag E. S. Mittler & Sohn GmbH, 12/1999, on www.bmlv.gv.at
- Factsheet NATO Operation Deliberate Force ( Memento of November 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
- Coalition Wars: Considerations for the Air Fleet Commander, June 1996 Coalition Warfare, Peter C. Hunt, Major, USAF - Deliberate Force, A Case Study
Individual evidence
- ↑ Marine history at janmaat ( Memento from March 2, 2011 in the Internet Archive )