Article

2012-04-28 Syria-Lebanon-Iran

U.S. Amasses Stealth-Jet Armada Near Iran

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Sherry 2012-04-28 00:00|| E-Mail|| Front Page|| [11132 views ] Top

#1 ...This is interesting for a couple of reasons:

1: The biggest problem with the -22 is that it was built in tactically useless numbers and the leadership is terrified of losing one for any reason, so a serious, honest-to-God, no-$hit deployment (especially after all the contortions the USAF leadership went through to justify not sending them to Libya) means that somebody at the Echelons Above Reality is not kidding around.

2: The Raptor-Eagle team is probably the most vicious air supremacy weapon anybody's ever come up with. The strengths of each aircraft compliment each other quite nicely, and when you throw in our ability to run flawless operations on a 24/7 basis backed up by the guys and gals in the E-3s, these guys will be capable of pretty much sweeping the sky clear of any Iranian fighters that actually get airborne - especially their surviving F-14s, which are now used more as AWACS.

3: The -22s - being essentially invisible to the Iranians - have an incredible potential to just mess with them. Given (1) above, I think that's one part of their mission.

Mike

Posted by Mike Kozlowski 2012-04-28 07:25|| 2012-04-28 07:25|| Front Page Top

#2 Israel has been busy in neighboring Azerbaijan.

Posted by Mike Ramsey 2012-04-28 08:20|| 2012-04-28 08:20|| Front Page Top

#3 Mike, I like your number one reasoning and massivly significant now you've draw attention to it.

Posted by Kojack 2012-04-28 09:11|| 2012-04-28 09:11|| Front Page Top

#4 ..of course we're all assuming that its aimed at Iran and not to obstruct, say, an Israel preemptive strike.

Posted by Procopius2k 2012-04-28 10:09|| 2012-04-28 10:09|| Front Page Top

#5 Debkafile weighs in on the subject. Usual grain of salt, but y'all will begetter able to interpret than I.

Posted by trailing wife 2012-04-28 12:41|| 2012-04-28 12:41|| Front Page Top

#6 Procopius2k: I'd have serious doubts on whether our pilots would fire on Isreal.

Posted by Charles 2012-04-28 20:06|| 2012-04-28 20:06|| Front Page Top

#7 y'all will begetter able

...be better able... PIMF!!

Posted by trailing wife 2012-04-28 20:53|| 2012-04-28 20:53|| Front Page Top

#8 ..or inbounds without proper IFF headed in the direction of friendly forces arrayed just to the west and south of Iran?

Posted by Procopius2k 2012-04-28 20:59|| 2012-04-28 20:59|| Front Page Top

23:06 Barbara
23:03 Barbara
21:54 Pappy
21:54 swksvolFF
21:46 Pappy
21:33 Mikey Hunt
21:08 Dale
21:00 CrazyFool
20:59 Procopius2k
20:53 trailing wife
20:40 DepotGuy
20:16 Frank G
20:14 Frank G
20:06 Charles
20:03 Charles
19:56 Charles
19:44 Dale
19:17 Dale
19:11 Unutle Pelosi6887
19:06 GolfBravoUSMC
18:57 Gruth McGurque5303
18:56 Bright Pebbles
18:53 Blackbeard Noodleman4715
18:49 Anguper Hupomosing9418
Merry-Go-Blog