Realizing that the supply of weapons to Croats and Muslims could not change the situation, the Serbs continued to attack. NATO has decided to intervene in the conflict itself. In order to deprive the Serbs of their main trump card, aviation, in April 1993 in Brussels, it was decided to carry out Operation Danny Fly ("No Flight"). To this end, at Italian airfields, the alliance assembled an international grouping, which included American, British, French and Turkish combat vehicles. Of course, the "ban" did not apply to Muslims and Croats.
An American F-15C fighter jet at the Italian Aviano airbase as part of Operation Danny Fly. 1993 year
During this operation, for the first time in 20 years, US Air Force aircraft were deployed in France. These were 5 tanker aircraft, which were based at the French Istres airbase. They carried out aerial refueling of NATO fighters patrolling the airspace over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Already in the fall of 1993, NATO aircraft began to behave more aggressively, flying at extremely low altitudes over the areas of deployment of detachments that it considered hostile. For some reason, in almost all cases, the "enemies" were the Serbs. Most often, the American A-10A attack aircraft and the British Jaguars, hung with bombs and missiles, demonstrated their strength.
However, NATO aviation had problems detecting and continuously monitoring targets for future "selective" strikes. This was facilitated by the semi-partisan nature of military operations, when the opponents had the same equipment, equipment and camouflage uniforms. In addition, Bosnia had a predominantly mountainous terrain, the presence of numerous urban developments, and heavy traffic on the roads. Therefore, in February 1993, the SAS (Special Airborne Service) units of Great Britain appeared, which were supposed to detect the positions of the air defense missile systems, command posts, communication centers, warehouses and artillery batteries of the Serbs, direct aviation to the identified targets and determine the results of the strikes. In addition, they were entrusted with the selection of sites for receiving cargo dropped by NATO aircraft for Bosnian Muslims and ensuring the reception of cargo. If at first one SAS platoon was sent to Bosnia, then in August 1993 two special forces companies were already operating there. Moreover, the vehicles of the UN peacekeeping forces were often used to withdraw reconnaissance groups to Serbian territory.
So, everything was ready, all that remained was to find a reason to use force. The reason was found suspiciously quickly, it was an explosion on February 5, 1994 in a market square in Sarajevo. The mortar shot, which killed 68 people, was immediately attributed to the Serbs. The commander of the UN forces in Sarajevo, British Lieutenant General Michael Rose turned to NATO for help. On February 9, a demand was put forward for the immediate withdrawal of Serbian heavy weapons 20 km from Sarajevo or transferring it under UN control. In case of disobedience, NATO reserved the right to launch air strikes. At the last moment, after the arrival of the Russian contingent of UN forces in Sarajevo, the Serbs returned their guns to their former positions. Considering that at that time of hostilities the Serbs were gaining the upper hand, it becomes clear that Western "democracies" supported Muslims and Croats.
On the morning of February 28, 1994, an E-3 AWACS spotted unidentified aircraft in the Banja Luka area that had taken off from the airfield. Two American F-16 Block 40 fighters (led by Captain Robert Wright, Wing Captain Scott O Grady) from the 526th Black Knights Tactical Fighter Squadron, transferred to Italy from the Rammstein US Air Force Base in Germany, were sent to intercept.).
The unidentified planes turned out to be six Bosnian Serb J-21 Hawk attack aircraft attacking a Muslim arms factory in Novi Travnik.
This was already the second attack, the first on target was performed by a pair of "Orao", but they, who approached at an ultra-low altitude, were not noticed from AWACS. The entire flight to the target and back, "Orao" performed at extremely low altitude, the Americans spotted the pair only for a short time, when the fighter-bombers "jumped" to attack the target from a dive. Interestingly, the successful actions of the Orao did not seem to have received due assessment from the NATO Air Command, since later, in Kosovo, Serb fighter-bombers successfully used just such tactics.
Attack aircraft Ј-22 "Orao" of the air force of the Bosnian Serb army after completing a combat mission
The Americans claim that from the Sentry, Serbian pilots were warned by radio that they were entering UN-controlled airspace (the Serbs still hold the opinion that this was not done). While the American fighters were requesting permission to attack, the Hawks began to go home at low altitude (apparently, they were not even aware of the presence of the Americans in the area).
The Serbian attack aircraft did not have missiles, and the low speed (maximum 820 km / h, cruising 740 km / h) did not allow to get away from supersonic fighters, so all six "hawks" became an easy target for the F-16. Captain Robert Wright shot down three attack aircraft in succession with AIM-120 rockets and sidewinder. The rockets fired by O'Grady missed the mark. Then a pair of F-16s stopped pursuing and headed for an airbase in Italy due to the consumption of the main part of the fuel. They were replaced by another pair of F-16s, whose leader Stephen Allen managed to shoot down another attack aircraft.
F-16CM fighter, US Air Force Captain Stephen Allen. There is a star under the cockpit canopy. It means aerial victory. On February 28, 1994, this fighter shot down the J-21 "Hawk" attack aircraft of the Bosnian Serbs with an AIM-9M Sidewinder missile
Due to the proximity of the Croatian border, it was decided to stop the pursuit and the remaining pair of J-21s, according to a report from the E-3, were able to land at the airfield. Just a few minutes later, all the world media published a report on the first air battle in NATO history.
As a result of the aerial combat, the two US Air Force pilots were awarded a total of four aerial victories. Captain Bob "Wilbur" Wright became the United States Air Force's highest scoring pilot for the Fighting Falcon. For some time, the US Air Force did not make the pilot's name public as he continued to fly over the Balkans. The "author" of victories in "aerial combat" became known only a few months later, when Wright received a special prize "Outstanding Pilot" from Lockheed.
However, according to Serbian sources, five out of six attack aircraft were lost (the sixth "Hawk" was damaged). What happened to the fifth car is not completely clear. According to some reports, in the area of the airfield, leaving the Americans at an ultra-low altitude, the plane touched the tops of trees, according to others, trying to "shake off" the Yankees from its tail, consumed all the fuel, fell before reaching the runway. In any case, the pilot of this "Yastreb" managed to eject safely. Of the downed four, only one pilot was able to escape, and three others were killed.
Painting by a contemporary American artist depicting "dogfight" on February 28, 1994
But even such a show of force did not break the Serbs. Units under the command of General Radko Mladic continued to conduct active hostilities in the Gorazde area. By April 9, the Serbs, who controlled about 75% of the territory of the Gorazdin boiler, had every opportunity to easily take the city. NATO was faced with the task of preventing the defeat of Muslims at any cost. Since, in accordance with the existing UN resolutions, military actions could be undertaken only to protect UN personnel, 8 UN troops were urgently deployed in Gorazde on April 7. At the same time, British special forces appeared in the city, who were supposed to become the leading aviation gunners.
On the evening of April 10, SAS fighters called the aircraft. The British came under fire from two Serbian tanks near Gorazde. A pair of US Air Force F-16s were assigned to complete the mission. Although the attack aircraft were supported by the EC-130E, low clouds prevented the pilots from visually detecting the tanks. The American pilots, not finding the main target, bombed the spare - then proudly named in the reports by the command post of the Serbs. But it can be said with a high degree of certainty that in reality an empty space was bombed. The next day, the attack on three Serbian armored personnel carriers was repeated by a pair of F / A-18A. Apparently, with the same result, since they bombed from a very high altitude, fearing to fall under the fire of the Serbian air defense.
On April 15, a MANPADS missile fired from the ground hit the French reconnaissance aircraft Etandar IVPM.
Serbian anti-aircraft gunners with Strela-2M MANPADS
The striking elements of the rocket riddled the entire tail of the aircraft, but the pilot was able to barely drag his wrecked car to the Clemenceau aircraft carrier, and then successfully land on its deck.
Damaged French reconnaissance aircraft "Etandard" IVPM on the deck of the aircraft carrier "Clemenceau"
On April 16, two Sea Harrier FRS.1 of 801 AEs from the aircraft carrier Ark Royal appeared over Goraja. The target of the British was Serbian armored vehicles on the outskirts of the city, at which they were directed by compatriots from the SAS, located on the roof of the Gardina hotel, from which the surroundings were perfectly visible.
During the attack by a MANPADS missile (according to another version, the Kvadrat air defense system), the Sea Harrier FRS.1 was hit, after which the raids on the Serbs stopped that day. After the pilot of the Harrier, Lieutenant Nick Richardson ejected, his plane crashed into a Muslim village, previously untouched by the war. At the same time, the earth was not without casualties and destruction. Therefore, an extremely "warm and friendly" welcome awaited the Englishman on earth: the local peasants beat him very badly. But then we figured it out: the pilot and the SAS group were evacuated from Gorazde by a Super Puma helicopter of the French army aviation.
Serb attacks on Gorazde resulted in NATO establishing a "heavy weapons-free" zone around the enclave. As in the case of Sarajevo, the only argument for the withdrawal of tanks and artillery by the Serbs from Gorazde was the threat of massive air raids.
On August 5, 1994, taking the French peacekeepers hostage, the Serbs were able to pick up several M-18 "Hellcat" self-propelled guns from the "peacekeepers" warehouse. For a long time, the search from the air was unsuccessful, until a pair of American A-10 attack aircraft on one of the mountain roads found and destroyed the self-propelled guns with the fire of their 30-mm cannons. At least that's what the pilots reported on their return to their airfield. On September 22, a pair of British GR.1 Jaguars and a single A-10 20 km from Sarajevo destroyed a Serbian T-55, which had previously fired at a UN convoy (one Frenchman was wounded).
In November 1994, fighting in Bosnia flared up with renewed vigor. Now the spearhead of the Serb strikes was directed at Bihac. This enclave was not far from the Croatian border, and the aircraft of the Bosnian Serb air force could quite effectively support their army. The flight time from Udbina airfield in Serbian Krajina in Croatia to Bihac was only a few minutes. At the beginning of November 1994 in Udbina there were 4 J-22 Orao attack jets, 4 G-4 Super Galeb, 6 J-21 Hawk, Mi-8 helicopter and 4-5 SA-341 helicopters. Gazelle". There were several training piston aircraft J-20 "Kragui" used as light attack aircraft. In the interests of the Bosnian Serbs, the aviation of Yugoslavia worked, in addition, the Bosnian Serbs had their own aircraft, which were based in Banja Luka. The air defense of the advancing troops was provided by 16 S-75 air defense systems. The Serbs also used the C-75 against ground targets of Bosnian Muslims and Croats. About 18 missiles were fired in November-December 1994 at ground targets. In this case, the missiles were detonated on contact with the ground or the detonation was carried out at low altitude.
SAM S-75 army of the Bosnian Serbs
The first attack on the Bosnians was struck by Serbian aircraft on November 9. From 9 to 19 November, Orao fighter-bombers made at least three raids.
Suspension of weapons for the J-22 "Orao" attack aircraft of the Bosnian Serb army
The aircraft struck with free-fall bombs, napalm tanks, and American AGM-65 Mayverick guided missiles.
AGM-65 "Mayverick" under the wing of the attack aircraft J-22 "Orao"
The raids caused significant damage to Muslims, but also resulted in civilian casualties. The only lost combat aircraft was the J-22 Orao, which, due to a pilot error on November 18, crashed into a building while flying at an ultra-low altitude. Serbs no less actively used Gazel combat helicopters, which, flying at low and ultra-low altitudes and using mountainous terrain, as a rule, were not detected at all from AWACS. Taking advantage of the fact that there was no continuous front line, helicopters often launched an attack on their targets from the most unexpected directions, destroying armored vehicles and fortified positions of Muslims and Croats. As a result, only one Gazelle was lost, shot down in a reconnaissance flight by small arms fire.
NATO air patrols have repeatedly tried to intercept Serbian aircraft, but the Fighting Falcon pilots simply did not have enough time for this. At the moment when NATO fighters left for the Bihac area, Serbian aircraft were already safe at the Udbina airfield. NATO aircraft have not yet invaded the airspace of Serbian Krajina.
In the end, the patience of the "peacekeepers" from NATO snapped and, with the consent of the Croatian leadership, an operation was developed to "neutralize" the Udbin airfield. The Croats easily agreed to the expansion of air operations in the Balkans, quite rightly believing that this expansion would only play into their hands. Tudjman hoped to deal with Serbian Krajina with the help of NATO. The planning of this operation was facilitated by the fact that the airfield of the airbase was perfectly visible from the observation posts of the Czech UN battalion located on the heights dominating Udbina. So, the NATO command did not experience a lack of the most recent intelligence information.
The operation involved aircraft from eight Italian air bases. The first to take off on November 21 were the US Air Force KC-135R, French Air Force KC-135FR and RAF Tristar, which entered the designated patrol areas over the Adriatic Sea.
More than 30 combat aircraft took part in the raid: 4 British Jaguars, 2 Jaguars and 2 Mirage-2000M-K2 French Air Force, 4 Dutch F-16A, 6 Hornets F / A-18D of the US Marine Corps, 6 F-15E, 10 F-16C and EF-111A of the USAF. It was planned that the F-16C fighter-bombers of the Turkish Air Force would take part in the raid, but the airfield where they were based was covered with dense and low clouds.
Multipurpose fighter Jaguar of the French Air Force
The strike was coordinated from an ES-130E aircraft of the 42nd US Air Force Command Squadron. The monitoring of the air situation was carried out by the US Air Force E-3A Sentry and the British Air Force E-3D. In case of possible losses, the command of the operation had a search and rescue group, which included: A-10A attack aircraft of the US Air Force, NS-130 aircraft and MH-53J helicopters of the US Air Force special operations forces and French Super Cougars.
Udbina was covered by batteries of Bofors L-70 anti-aircraft guns and a battery of the Kvadrat air defense missile system stationed near the runway.
Serbian 40-mm anti-aircraft gun Bofors L-70
The first wave of attack aircraft hit the position of the air defense missile system and anti-aircraft artillery, covering the Serbian airfield. Two Hornets from a distance of 21 km fired AGM-88 HARM anti-radar guided missiles at the radar of the anti-aircraft missile system, followed by two more F-18A / D from a distance of 13 km, the Mayverik UR fired directly at the positions of the anti-aircraft missile systems. As a result, one transport-loading vehicle of the air defense missile system and the antenna of the radar for detecting air targets were damaged. After that, the aircraft remained above the airfield in order, if necessary, to destroy air defense systems that had not been previously detected. After the attack, the Hornets remained in the Udbina area, in order, if necessary, to finish off the revived radar with the remaining HARM missiles. The air defense system of the airbase was finished off by the F-15E.
The next stage of the attack was the destruction of the airfield infrastructure. French Jaguars and American F-15Es dropped laser-guided bombs onto the runway and taxiways. British Jaguars, Dutch F-16s and French Mirazh-2000s were also used for them, but with ordinary Mk.84 bombs. Photographs of the results of the bombing showed that the GBU-87 bombs dropped by the F-15E lay along the axis of the runway. The F-15E also dropped guided bombs on sections of the expressway adjacent to the airbase and used by the Serbs as alternate runways. The F-16s completed what they had begun, dropping several dozen CBU-87 cluster bombs. In total, about 80 bombs and missiles were dropped during the strike. Aircraft and helicopters of the Serbian Krajina were not attacked, and none of them was damaged. The village of Visucha, located a few kilometers from Udbina, was also under attack.
The EF-111A jammer did not allow any Serbian radar to operate normally during the raid. The crews noted the launches of MANPADS missiles and the weak fire of small-caliber anti-aircraft artillery. A similar reaction of the Serbs was envisaged at the planning stage of the operation, so all strikes were delivered from medium altitudes, while MANPADS and MZA are capable of hitting only air targets flying below 3000 m. The attack lasted about 45 minutes, then the planes returned to bases.
During the bombing, an incident occurred related to the Czech "peacekeepers", whose observation post was located near the airfield and who were directing NATO aircraft. This was established by Serb soldiers at the airfield when they heard the corresponding talks on the radio. One of the air defense crews opened fire on the observation post from the ZSU M53 / 59 "Prague", after which the Czechs fled, leaving there a radio station, aerodrome photographs and observation equipment. At the same moment, the raid stopped. This led to an extreme aggravation between the Serbs and the peacekeepers, who were accused of spying for the enemy.
ZSU M53 / 59 "Prague" of the Bosnian Serb army
The NATO air attack caused significant damage to the airfield infrastructure. The Serbs were able to restore it only two weeks later. During the bombing, two soldiers were killed, and four were injured, and several civilians were also injured.
A day after the raid on Udbina, the Serbs fired at two British Sea Harriers from the 800th nuclear power plant from the aircraft carrier Invincible with two S-75 missiles from a position in the Bihac area during a reconnaissance flight. Both aircraft were damaged by a close detonation of missile warheads, but managed to return to the ship.
For photographing the detected and possibly other positions of the air defense system, the NATO command allocated eight reconnaissance aircraft: British Jaguars, French Mirage F.1CR and Dutch F-16A (r).
Scout "Mirage" F.1CR French Air Force
To protect the scouts, 4 F-15E, 4 F / A-18D and several EA-6B electronic warfare aircraft armed with HARM anti-radar missiles, as well as two French Jaguars were involved. An EF-111A jammer hung in the air. Search and rescue forces were in readiness number 1, the allocated airspace was occupied by tanker aircraft and the AWACS and U.
The planes appeared on the morning of November 23, the crews noticed that they were being irradiated by the radar station of the S-75 complex, through which two HARM missiles were immediately fired, after which the radiation stopped. A few minutes later, a radar station located on the territory of Serbian Krajina began to operate on NATO aircraft. Its work was stopped by AGM-88 anti-radar guided missiles. All NATO aircraft returned safely to their bases. However, the deciphering of aerial photographs showed that the air defense missile system was not destroyed.
In the evening of the same day, two launchers of the C-75 complex disabled F-15E fighter-bombers with laser-guided bombs, at the same time, one or two more HARMs were fired at the complex's radar.
In response to the bombing of the airfield in the Udbina region, two soldiers from the Czech contingent of UN forces were taken prisoner, however, they were quickly freed by the Serbs themselves - the Czechs, after all, were Slavs. The Bosnian Serbs took 300 French UN troops hostage, and at Serbian Bosnia's main air force base Banja Luka, three UN military observers were kept on the runway as human shields against possible air raids. In the Sarajevo area, Serbian air defense systems have become more active, the potential targets of which were aircraft delivering humanitarian aid to the capital of Bosnia.
Near Bihac on November 25, hostilities resumed without regard to the forbidden zone for heavy weapons. Four Serbian tanks were advancing towards the city center. General Michael Rose faxed the Serbs that the attack on the tanks would follow without further warning. 30 aircraft took to the air, the strike group included 8 Hornets and 8 Strike Needles. The tanks were hidden by the night, so General Rose banned the attack. On the way back, the pilots noted three missile launches by the Kvadrat complex.
The next day, two British Air Force Tornado F. Mk.3 fighters fired on a C-75 air defense system over central Bosnia.
Not a single missile hit the target. The shelling of the British "Tornadoes" against the Serbs has become a pretext for a real escalation of the conflict by NATO. An amphibious assault carrier "Nassau" with the 22nd US Marine Expeditionary Airborne Group, carrying CH-53, CH-46, UH-1N and AH-1W helicopters, was urgently sent to the Adriatic Sea. On the Croatian island of Brač, the 750th reconnaissance UAV squadron, controlled by the US CIA, was deployed. To relay control commands to the UAV and receive information from drones, the CIA used one of the most secret American aircraft - the stealthy Schweitzer RG-8A.
On December 15, Muslims (not Serbs!) Fired at the British Sea King. The helicopter got hit in the fuel tank and rotor blades, but the pilots managed to reach the nearest helipad with a wrecked car.
Helicopter Westland Sea King NS Mk.4 845th AE of the British Navy. Split, Croatia, September 1994
On the same day, the Sea Harrier FRS Mk. I crashed over the Adriatic Sea, the ejected pilot was rescued by a search and rescue helicopter from the Prince of Asturias light aircraft carrier of the Spanish Navy. Two days later, the Super Etandar of the French aircraft carrier Foch was hit by an Igla MANPADS missile over central Bosnia. The pilot was able to return to the Italian airbase.
From time to time, the Muslim Air Force was also "noted" over the battlefield, but each time it was unsuccessful.
So, on August 2, 1994, a Ukrainian An-26 was shot down while returning after delivering a cargo of weapons and ammunition for the 5th corps. Bosnian Muslims.
The Muslims purchased 15 Mi-8s, the crews for which were trained in Croatia, but the Croats donated only 10 machines. It was not Croatia - the authorities in Sarajevo are still demanding that Turkey supply 6 paid, but never received helicopters. The type of the helicopters is not specified, but it is likely that they are used by the Turkish gendarmerie Mi-17-1V, which Ankara acquired in 1993 in Russia. Slovenia, where Muslim pilots received instrument flight training, also detained one AV.412.
On December 3, 1994, as a result of an overload, one Muslim Mi-8 fell on a car at a Croatian airfield and exploded. The explosion on the ground destroyed another Mi-8 of the BiH army, the Mi-8 of the Croatian Air Force, and four more Croatian Mi-8s were damaged. According to official data, no one was killed, six people were injured - citizens of Croatia, Hungary and BiH. 141,000 rounds of ammunition, 306 RPG-7 grenades, 20 HJ-8 missiles, 370 kg of TNT, sets of uniforms and footwear "flew" into the air. However, other helicopters continued to fly. Six Mi-8s, Gazelle and Bell 206 were taken into the air every day. The Muslim Mi-8s carrying weapons were supposed to fly through the territory of Serbian Krajina, which had a division of the Kvadrat air defense missile system, Strela-2M and Igla, air defense missile systems. Tsitsiban "(Serbian ground-based air defense system based on the K-13M air-to-air missile system), as well as anti-aircraft artillery. However, the pilots had maps of the deployment of the Serbian air defense. Croats updated information about the air defense of the Serbs daily, and reported all changes to the headquarters of the Muslim forces. In addition to reconnaissance of movements and ambushes of Serbian air defense, NATO daily recorded the work of Serbian radars, transmitting information about their activity. The most dangerous air defense systems for helicopters "Kvadrat" were often impossible to use because of the threat from NATO aviation and high fuel consumption, which the Serbian army was chronically lacking. The size of the territory allowed helicopter pilots to change directions of flight. GPS receivers have become a great help for pilots. Flights were usually carried out at night. The fact that they used Gazel helicopters armed with Strela 2M MANPADS to intercept can testify to how annoying these flights were to the Serbs.
Helicopter "Gazelle JNA" with MANPADS "Strela 2M"
Nevertheless, on May 7, 1995, a Mi-8 was shot down by a MANPADS missile (12 people were killed). The events of May 28 received a much greater resonance, when the Bosnian Foreign Minister was killed in the Mi-8, shot down by the Kvadrat air defense missile system of the Serbian Krajina army. Together with him, under the wreckage of the helicopter, three persons accompanying him were also killed, as well as the entire crew of three Ukrainians, who "worked" under a contract in Bosnia. According to some sources, this machine was hijacked from the Air Force of the new Yugoslavia in 1994. In addition, the media claimed that it was a helicopter from the Russian peacekeeping contingent, which is, at best, a "newspaper duck".
On August 22, 1995, a helicopter crashed, in which, in addition to the Ukrainian crew, six more Muslim field commanders were killed. The most likely reason for the fall can be considered an attack by a NATO fighter, the pilot of which considered the helicopter to be Serbian.
Also, under unclear circumstances in the Sarajevo area, another helicopter was lost (a total of six vehicles were lost) of the Muslim forces. Information about this case is minimal. The only document that mentions this loss is the verbatim record of the meeting of the Supreme Council of Defense of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia on April 15, 1994. Council member Slobodan Milosevic, who was then President of Serbia, said: a Muslim helicopter. It was painted white and looked like a UN helicopter from a distance. It was a large Russian Mi-8 helicopter. There were 28 people. Nobody reported the loss! First, they are not allowed to fly; no one announced anything that happened! The reason for concealing the loss of the helicopter should be sought in the period when it was shot down - April 1994, the army of BiH was still hiding the presence of helicopters.
Helicopter Mi-8MTV of the armed forces of Bosnia-Herzegovina, November 1993
In total, the aviation of the army of Bosnia and Herzegovina performed 7,000 sorties, more than 2/3 of which were helicopters. 30,000 people were transported, including 3,000 wounded, 3,000 tons of cargo.
