Air power seen as dominant
force in war against terrorism
By Marni McEntee,
Kaiserslautern bureau
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany — Air power will dominate any war against terrorism,
and Europe’s forward-placed air bases could serve as key staging areas for future
attacks.
From F-15E Strike Eagles and F-16 Fighting Falcons launching laser guided bombs to
KC-135 Stratotankers keeping everything in the air gassed up, U.S. Air Forces Europe will
play an important role in that war, Air Force experts said.
"The Air Force is expected to dominate the conflict in all spectrums," said
Nick Price, aerospace consultant for Jane’s Defence Weekly.
But it will take the nation’s entire military might to get the job done,
USAFE’s top leader said Saturday.
"A lot of people have guessed where the center of that network is — its nerve
system if you will. But I’m not sure if many people have all the answers they need
about where all the nodes of that network are," said Gen. Gregory S. Martin, USAFE
commander.
"Every bit of our military support around the world could be a staging base or
operating base against one of those nodes," Martin said. "We’re going to
have to look at our entire military inventory as part of this process."
USAFE commands 26,000 airmen and about 225 aircraft that can carry everything from
troops and equipment to bombs and fuel.
The 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath, England; the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem,
Germany; and the 510th and 555th Fighter Squadrons at Aviano, Italy, could serve as the
tip of a very powerful spear if called into action.
The 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall, England, and the 86th Airlift Wing at
Ramstein Air Base, Germany — the theater’s strategic airlift hub — also
will play critical roles in any sustained campaign against terrorism.
Mildenhall also serves as the home to the 352nd Special Operations Group, which reports
to a stateside command. The search and rescue experts also could be assigned other
sensitive missions.
"It’s going to be a standard military planning approach to evaluate what the
assets are in the theater and how will we supplement them," said Michele Flournoy,
senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a former Pentagon
official.
The Air Force may have to conduct air strikes, precision bombing, covert and
intelligence operations, including space-based surveillance and communications, to rout a
particularly insidious enemy, Price said.
"My hunch is that for an operation of this sort — given that any
self-respecting terrorist would by now have headed for the nearest cave — you would
need a great deal more precision than would be conferred by cruise missiles," Price
said.
A terrorist network, such as the one run by terrorist suspect Osama bin Laden, will be
particularly difficult to seek and destroy, Price and Martin said.
"We have to find these people, we have to find their support network, we have to
excise them from this tissue, if you will, without inciting some sort of an emotional
backlash from all the other like countries," Martin said. "This is a very, very
difficult process and it’s long term."
Martin did not want to discuss the mix of troops or weapons that might be used to
accomplish that goal.
Price, however, said it would involve manned fighter and bomber sorties in a
"controlled point operation." That means a campaign that relies on rapid
intelligence to detect the enemy’s location, followed by a swift, precise attack.
"You need to get a weapon on that target very quickly," Price said.
The key to success with air strikes, however, will be proximity. India and Turkey have
given the United States and its allies permission to use their bases and airspace. U.S.
leaders pressured Pakistan to do the same this weekend. Pakistan recognizes
Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership — which is said to harbor bin Laden.
As military leaders continue to plan and sift through intelligence information, Martin
said the effort requires patience.
"As much as people want to lash out and pay somebody back we have to be smarter
than that and we have to understand what we’re dealing with and we have to be very,
very intelligent," he said.
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