Wild Weasel Fighter Attack: The Story of the Suppression of Enemy Air Defences

284 Pages·2008·7.48 MB·English

by  Thomas Withington

First published in Great Britain in 2008 by
Pen & Sword Aviation
an imprint of
Pen & Sword Books Ltd
47 Church Street
Barnsley
South Yorkshire
S70 2AS
Copyright © Thomas Withington, 2008
ISBN 978 1 84415 668 9
ISBN 9781848849563 (epub)
ISBN 9781848849570 (prc)
The right of Thomas Withington to be identified as Author of this work has
been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act 1988.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is
available from the British Library.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying,
recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
permission from the Publisher in writing.
Typeset in Palatino by
Phoenix Typesetting, Auldgirth, Dumfriesshire Printed and bound in England
by
CPI UK
Pen & Sword Books Ltd incorporates the imprints of Pen & Sword Aviation,
Pen & Sword Maritime, Pen & Sword Military, Wharncliffe Local History,
Pen & Sword Select, Pen & Sword Military Classics and Leo Cooper.
For a complete list of Pen & Sword titles please contact
PEN & SWORD BOOKS LIMITED
47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS, England
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
Contents
Dedication

Acknowledgements

Chapter One
The Mission Defined

Chapter Two
Vietnam and SEAD

Chapter Three
SEAD Operations in the Middle East

Chapter Four
Cold War SEAD

Chapter Five
Non Cold-War SEAD Operations 1965–1987
Chapter Six
Desert Storm SEAD

Chapter Seven
SEAD in the Balkans
Chapter Eight
SEAD During the Global War on Terror

Chapter Nine
Future SEAD

Glossary

Index
For Dr. Chris Smith and Dr. Ahron Bregman;
both mentors extraordinaire, great friends and suppliers of
inexhaustible wisdom, motivation and enthusiasm!
Acknowledgements
Researching a book which covers such a huge swathe of military aviation
history is both a highly rewarding and, at times, frustrating business. That said,
several individuals were kind enough to give me their time, suggestions and
knowledge which helped me understand the complex nature of the air defence
suppression mission. Dr. Gerald ‘Gerry’ Stiles provided me with an excellent
overview of the principles behind Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD)
and the mission's history. I am grateful to Major General Len Le Roux at the
Institute for Security Studies who kindly put me in touch with Brigadier
General Richard Lord, formerly of the South African Air Force, from whom I
gathered much information regarding South Africa's SEAD missions during the
Angolan Wars. Similarly, Colonel Pierre Alain Antoine gave a very valuable
account of French Air Force SEAD operations during the Chad civil war.
Major Anthony Roberson of the United States Air Force supplied first-rate
information on the SEAD effort during Operation Iraqi Freedom, while Tom
Newdick gave me the benefit of his considerable knowledge of Soviet Air
Force SEAD doctrine and platforms. Philippe Wodka-Gallien was an eleventh-
hour hero for providing some fascinating information regarding French SEAD
operations, pictures and also an infectious motivation with his love of military
aviation. My thanks also to Mike Gibbons of Boeing who provided me with a
superb overview of the EA-18G Growler programme. Captain Mark Gibson at
the Public Affairs office at Shaw AFB helped immeasurably in sorting out
interviews, while Sergeant Rebecca Danet at the National Media Outreach
Center of the USAF also helped to a great extent in this regard. Darren Lake,
Editor of Unmanned Vehicles Magazine, provided me with some very useful
contacts.

Special thanks must go to Peter Coles, Editor of Pen and Sword military
aviation, for believing in this project and also for being so patient when
deadlines were outstripping my interview schedule! My friends and family
were patient, enthusiastic and happy to hear me whittling on about surface-to-
air missiles on a regular basis. Last but by no means least my partner Dr.
Nathalie Rivere de Carles was a source of endless encouragement and
motivation, patient in the extreme during my long hours at the computer, but
with a keen eye and perceptive mind. There may be others who assisted me
with a keen eye and perceptive mind. There may be others who assisted me
who I have omitted to thank and if that is so, please accept my humble
apologies and deep gratitude. Needless to say, the responsibility for any errors
or omissions lies solely with the author.

Thomas Withington,
South-west France.
CHAPTER ONE
The Mission Defined
It would be an exaggeration to say that the mission is suicidal, yet an
understatement to say that it is dangerous. However, in almost seventy years,
the effort to suppress and destroy enemy air defences has pitted the determined
wit and cunning of the combat pilot against the dogged tenacity of the air
defender manning either AntiAircraft Artillery (AAA) weapons, Surface-to-Air
Missiles (SAMs) or gazing at radar; whether as part of an Integrated Air
Defence System (IADS) or as part of an individual battery.
For as long aircraft have been used for military purposes there have been
efforts to frustrate and defeat their desires. In peacetime, pilots face dangers
from the whims of the weather, the slack hand of inadequate maintenance and
design, or the simple yet deadly risk of human frailty; all of which can lead to
accidents. In wartime, these dangers are in addition to those of the gun and the
missile whose operators seek, with all intent and purpose, to down the aircraft
that is bringing ordnance to a target, performing a reconnaissance sortie or a
Combat Air Patrol (CAP).
The way to defeat the latter risk is to take the war directly to the defenders,
to make antiaircraft defences a key target of airpower and also, in some
instances, land forces. Thus, the Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD)
mission has evolved from World War II as an adjunct to a larger air or ground
operation, to a complicated mission in its own right encompassing specialist
aircraft and munitions, Electronic Intelligence (ELINT) and ground forces in a
carefully scripted, destructive concerto aimed at wiping out the air defences of
an adversary with decisive blows.
Always a good starting point for definitions and descriptions is the United
States Department of Defense (DoD) Dictionary of Military Terms which
defines SEAD as: ‘That activity which neutralizes, destroys, or temporarily
degrades surface-based enemy air defenses by destructive and/or disruptive
means. This definition is corroborated by the Royal Australian Air Force's Air
Power Development Centre's Air Power Terminology dictionary which
reinforces the importance of the mission, while also stressing the result that
successful SEAD operations can have on the conduct of wider air operations:
‘The suppression of enemy air defences is a major role in the application of air