The Kosovo Campaign:
Aerospace Power Made It Work
By Rebecca Grant
Published by the Air Force Association in September 1999, this Special Report
demonstrates how aerospace power, as applied by the NATO allies in Operation
Allied Force, was responsible for the withdrawal of Serbian forces from Kosovo.
The report begins with a brief history of the conflict that has plagued the
region in recent years, then covers Milosevic's offensive into Kosovo and the
attempts for a peace deal in Rambouillet. It goes on to systematically describe
the military campaign from the planning stages to the ramp up of aircraft as the
operation expanded. It includes tables of aircraft used and targets hit.
It further gives special attention to the state of the Yugoslav air defense
system at the time of the campaign and a review of the first operational
use of the B-2 bomber.
The Kosovo Campaign considers, and ultimately rejects, claims which dismiss
the importance of the air campaign in the ultimate peace that prevailed.
Instead, the report concludes that key concepts of aerospace power, such
as the need to establish aerospace superiority, were validated.
The full text of this report is available online at the
Air Force Association website.