air interdiction

File:Hai Duong bridge bombing 1972.jpg bombs the Hai Duong bridge in North Vietnam in 1972.]]

Air interdiction (AI), also known as deep air support (DAS), is the use of preventive tactical bombing and strafing by combat aircraft against enemy targets that are not an immediate threat, to delay, disrupt or hinder later enemy engagement of friendly forces. It is a core capability of virtually all military air forces, and has been conducted in conflicts since World War I. Aircraft that are used for this purpose are known as interdictors.

A distinction is often made between tactical and strategic air interdiction, depending on the objectives of the operation. Typical objectives in tactical interdiction are meant to affect events rapidly and locally, for example through direct destruction of forces or supplies en route to the active battle area. By contrast, strategic objectives are often broader and more long-term, with fewer direct attacks on enemy fighting capabilities, instead focusing on infrastructure, logistics and other supportive assets.

The term deep air support relates to close air support and denotes the difference between their respective objectives. Close air support, as the name suggests, is directed towards targets close to friendly ground units, as closely coordinated air-strikes, in direct support of active engagement with the enemy. Deep air support or air interdiction is carried out further from the active fighting, based more on strategic planning and less directly coordinated with ground units. Despite being more strategic than close air support, air interdiction should not be confused with strategic bombing, which is unrelated to ground operations.

File:PAF_F-86_Sabres_1965_War.jpg of Pakistani F-86F Sabres returning from an interdiction mission during the 1965 war]]

Air interdiction can cause the physical destruction or attrition of soldiers and matériel before they can reach the battlefield, sever enemy's lines of communication, prevent soldiers and matériel from reaching the battlefield. It can create systemic inefficiencies in the enemy's logistic system so that soldiers and matériel arrive at the battlefield more slowly or in an uneconomical manner.Mark (1995), p. 1-6Chun (2001), pp. 131–132Mark (1995), pp. 401–405

History

=World War II=

{{further|Operation Strangle (World War II)|Transportation Plan}}In the lead up to the invasion of France, the Allied strategic bomber force was switched from the destruction of the enemy air force and means of production to a destruction of the railway routes to the intended landing areas. Once the landings were underway, the Allied tactical and strategic air forces were used to prevent the German strategic armoured reserves from being brought up to the coast and reinforce the divisions there.{{Excerpt|Operation Strangle (World_War_II)|paragraphs=1-2}}

=Korean War=

= Cold War =

During the Cold War, the NATO alliance leaned into the concept of air interdiction.{{Cite web |last=NATO |title=The Alliance's 1991 Strategic Concept |url=https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/official_texts_23847.htm |access-date=2023-11-21 |website=NATO |language=en}}"Air interdiction...is essential to the overall effectiveness of the Allies' military forces. Their role in supporting operations, on land and at sea, will require appropriate long-distance airlift and air refuelling capabilities. "

=Vietnam War=

{{Main|Operation Rolling Thunder|Operation Commando Hunt|Operation Linebacker}}

=Iran-Iraq War=

Both the Iranian Air Force (IIAF) and the Iraqi Air Force (IQAF) made concerted efforts during the early days of the Iran-Iraq War to interdict the other side. For both sides this largely amounted to engaging in armed reconnaissance and attacking targets of opportunity, with few attacks on pre-planned targets. The IIAF did have the advantage of having superior munitions and tactical reconnaissance - possessing a squadron of RF-4E Phantoms and pre-revolution targeting intelligence - but their efforts largely mirrored that of the IQAF.Bergquist (1988), p. 61-62

The IQAF's interdiction efforts peaked during the first 45 days of the war, but later declined to more sporadic missions, increasing in conjunction with major offensives. Interdiction by the IIAF was more sustained through late 1980 but after mid-January 1981 also declined. While both sides caused considerable damage on the other, with the Iranians arguably achieving more, neither interdiction effort was particularly effective nor did they play a factor in the outcome of the war. Both sides pulled back their air forces to avoid mounting losses and with the reasoning that, while they might not play a role in winning the war, they could still be used to avoid defeat.

=Gulf War 1990-1991=

=21st Century=

References

Bibliography

{{cite book

| volume = VIII | title = Die Ostfront 1943/44 – Der Krieg im Osten und an den Nebenfronten | trans-title = The Eastern Front 1943–1944: The War in the East and on the Neighbouring Fronts | publisher = Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt | location = München | year = 2007 | isbn = 9783421062352 | language = de }}

{{cite book |last=Mark |first=Eduard |title=Aerial Interdiction: Air Power and the Land Battle in Three American Wars |year=1995 |publisher=DIANE Publishing Company |isbn=9780788119668}}
{{cite book|last=Chun|first=Clayton|title=Aerospace Power in the Twenty-First Century: A Basic Primer|year=2001|publisher=Air Force Academy Colorado Sprints|isbn=9781428990296}}
{{cite book|last=Bergquist|first=Ronald E.|title=The Role of Airpower in the Iran-Iraq War|year=1988|publisher=Air University Press}}
{{citation |title=Operation 'Strangle', (Italy, Spring 1944): A Case Study of Tactical Air Interdiction |first=F M |last=Sallagar |date=February 1972 |publisher=The Rand Corporation |url=http://www.rand.org/pubs/reports/2006/R851.pdf |accessdate= 5 July 2008}}

External links

[https://web.archive.org/web/20070812025252/http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/apj/apj89/spr89/krieger.html Air Interdiction], by Clifford Krieger. Aerospace Power Journal, Spring 1989.
[https://web.archive.org/web/20110522040249/http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/doddict/data/a/00201.html DOD dictionary] definition of air interdiction.

Interdiction