With insubordinate armament in Tripoli and Moammar Gadhafi on the run, the end could be abreast for the Libyan civilian war. Sporadic angry continues in the basic city-limits of the oil-rich North African nation, NATO warplanes are still patrolling overhead, and there's consistently the crisis of Gadhafi true-believers ablution a beginning insurgency.
But already, Western analysts are belief the acquaint of the six-month-long conflict. "Modern air ability is the key force that is anon leading to the abolish of the Gadhafi regime," retired Air Force Lt. Gen. David Deptula concluded.
True, but a host of added cutting-edge technologies, and a few absolutely low-end ones, aswell played analytical roles.
Photo: Mike Elkin
Secret Sub
She lurked concealed below the Mediterranean Sea in the hours arch up to NATO's antecedent air strikes on Gadhafi's forces. Added than 500 anxiety continued and displacing 19,000 bags of water, the U.S. Navy's secretive, nuclear-powered, guided-missile abysmal USS Florida was the key to demography down Libyan government air defenses, allowance the way for the NATO bang planes.
When President Barack Obama gave the adjustment ablution the U.S.-led Operation Odyssey Dawn on March 19, Florida bound unleashed no beneath than 100 of its 160 Tomahawk cruise missiles in a massive battery that wiped out potentially array of anti-aircraft guns, radars and ground-to-air missiles. It was Florida's action debut.
"That's what you get if you accept a all-around Navy that's advanced all the time," crowed Adm. Gary Roughead, Chief of Argosy Operations.
Photo: U.S. Navy
Tiny Flattops
After Florida and added armament burst Gadhafi's air defenses, a huge agile of NATO bang aircraft descended on Libya. Over the next six months, hundreds of warplanes from 18 countries hit Libyan government armament no beneath than 7,000 times.
Many of the planes came from European acreage bases, but arguably the a lot of important strikers flew from an all-embracing agile of aircraft carriers sailing forth the Libyan coast. With the U.S. Navy's 100,000-ton supercarriers active elsewhere, abate "light carriers" handled Libya duty. France's Charles De Gaulle (40,000 tons) launched Rafale and Super Etendard fighters. The French helicopter carrier Tonnerre (20,000 tons) beatific in Gazelle and Tiger advance choppers, while Apache choppers flew from the British HMS Ocean (22,000 tons). Harrier jump jets sortied from Italy's Giuseppe Garibaldi (14,000 tons) and the USS Kearsarge (40,000 tons). The tiny flattops' absorbing achievement prompted some U.S. argosy thinkers to amend Washington's slavish adherence to ample carriers.
Photo: U.S. Navy
Her Majesty's Hunter-Killers
Leaving abreast an epic, globe-spanning mission by a brace of U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers, the a lot of able air raids on Libya by land-based warplanes were acceptable those performed by the British Royal Air Force, advanced deployed to an Italian air base. At a time of abysmal account cuts, the RAF managed to combine its oldest and newest bang planes into "hunter-killer" teams.
A 30-year-old swing-wing Tornado adviser accustomed a assay camera and laser-guided bombs would accompany a aboriginal Typhoon fighter acclimatized with a radio data-link, a laser designator and air-to-air missiles. The Typhoon would handle secure, all-embracing communications and targeting, while aswell befitting an eye out for Libyan fighters. The Tornado would bead the bombs and almanac video of the damage. The adept Tornado crews with their "20 years of experience" helped the greener Typhoon fliers advance quickly, Squadron Leader Rupert Joel told Combat Aircraft Magazine.
Photo: RAF
Flying Alarm Jammers
The confusion was widespread, but some of Gadhafi's air defenses survived Florida's cruise missiles and bombing runs by B-2 stealth bombers and added warplanes. To awning the bang planes over Libya, the U.S. Navy deployed its newest action aircraft, an F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter acclimatized with activating alarm jammers able of ambagious air-defense systems with floods of cyberbanking "noise."
Any defenses the EA-18G can't confuse, it can annihilate absolute with supersonic, radar-homing HARM missiles. The Growler is so specialized that no added warplane anywhere in the apple can according its skills. For that reason, U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Bill Gortney promised it and added "specialty cyberbanking airplanes" would abide over Libya, even afterwards the U.S. handed off circadian advance missions to European nations in backward March.
Photo: U.S. Navy
Drones, Big and Small
On June 21, ashamed NATO admiral accepted the accord had suffered its aboriginal action blow over Libya. One of the U.S. Navy's MQ-8 Fire Scout robot helicopters had been attempt down while spying on pro-Gadhafi armament east of Tripoli.
The robot-kill was the a lot of affecting affirmation of the growing apprentice army angry on the rebels' behalf. In accession to several caught Fire Scouts, the Pentagon beatific in MQ-1 Predators acclimatized with Hellfire missiles and airliner-size, high-flying RQ-4 All-around Hawk spy drones. And just this week, a Canadian aggregation appear it had provided Libyan rebels with a flying 'bot of their own: a tiny, camera-equipped Aeryon Scout.
Photo: U.S. Navy
DIY Gun Trucks
Cash-strapped and outnumbered, Libyan rebels had to accomplish do with whatever weapons they could scrounge, abduct or cobble calm in their workshops. The aftereffect was a bizarre, improvised armory featuring some decidedly able DIY accessory ... and some audible duds.
"Technical" trucks — pickups with accoutrements absorbed — are a allegiant bootleg weapon, but in Libya the rebels conceivably exceeded the technical's abeyant if they beggared on rocket launchers salvaged from the asleep Libyan air force. Equally arguable were bootleg armor plates anchored to some technicals. Ask any adept of Iraq, about 2004, and they'll acquaint you improvised armor can backlash by bearing baleful splinters if hit.
Watch Libyan insubordinate trucks lay down the law Watch Libyan insubordinate trucks lay down the law Watch Libyan insubordinate trucks lay down the lawThose Libyan trucks rebels are managing to cobble calm out of old abrasion machines assume to be… Apprehend added Read more
The rebels put to acceptable use at atomic three captured MiG-21 fighters, sending them aloft over western Libya to escort admission accumulation flights. The flights of the alleged "Free Libya Air Force" abandoned NATO's no-fly zone, but the accord didn't assume to mind.
The Claimed Touch
Probably the a lot of absolute "weapon" in the Libyan civilian war wasn't accouterments at all. It was the quiet, focused abetment of a baby army of adopted agents alive alongside the rebels in their continued advance appear Tripoli. "They acclimatized quickly," Barak Seener, an able at the Royal United Services Institute, said of the rebels. And that's "indicative that appropriate armament were training them," Seener added.
CIA agents and added American spooks reportedly provided intelligence; British, French, Italian and Qatari commandos helped cast the insubordinate army and formed a analytical hotlink amid the rebels and the NATO air armament orbiting overhead. Adopted armament aswell handled acumen and accident assessment.
It just goes to show: Technology can be impressive, but it's the claimed blow that absolutely affairs in the end.
Photo: Flickr/Nasser Nouri
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