Iraqi Air Force Will Remain Dependent On US

By Bruce Rolfsen - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Aug 7, 2009 20:31:46 EDT
Courtesy Of The Air Force Times

The Air Force’s future over Iraq could look a lot like operations Northern Watch and Southern Watch, the patrols U.S. fighters flew over Iraq between the end of Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.

A new report by the think tank Rand Corp., “Withdrawing from Iraq,” predicts the Iraqi air force won’t be able to defend its nation’s skies until long after U.S. forces pull out of the country in 2011.

According to the report, “The time between delivery of the first [Iraqi] F-16 aircraft — 2012 at the earliest — and the establishment of the first operational squadron could well stretch to 2020 or beyond.”

The report also states that “for some time after 2011, if Iraq is threatened with external aggression or a large-scale insurgency, it will have to either do without precision close air support and aerial intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, or request assistance from the United States or elsewhere.”

To aid Iraq without stationing airmen inside the country, the U.S. Air Force could station manned and remote-controlled aircraft near the Iraq border, the report offered.

During operations Northern Watch and Southern Watch, jet bases near Iraq flew daily patrols over the nation to enforce no-fly zones.