The United States has been bombarding ISIS in Libya for more than a month, but instead of using their multi-role fighters of 5ª generation F-35B - who trained on the USS Wasp today off the Libyan coast - they rely on the old glories embarked on the amphibious assault unit. During the operation Odyssey, which received the 'go' last 1 August with the goal of bringing air support to Libyan forces aligned with the Government of National Agreement Libyan (GNA), the 104 were reached in a month: but these were all carried out by the AH-1W helicopters Super Cobra and by the AV-8B Harrier II of Marines belonging to 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit.
So where are the precious fighter-bombers of 5 the generation of Lockheed Martin? If we had previously asked ourselves why the Marines' F-35 STOVLs were not in Syria (v.articolo), today we ask ourselves why I am not in Libya.
Of the 104 sorts recorded against ISIS targets in the Sirte stronghold, 92 were carried out on Harrier, 'ground attack' aircraft used by the Marines since the early 90s. This choice shows that the latest update of theHarrier it is undoubtedly a long-lived means and still at the level of the missions entrusted to it, but to think that for an 'operational mission' it was preferred to the latest generation apparatus that sent the AV-8B of our aircraft door into retirement Cavour and those of the English version that will not even place the 'cart' on the English aircraft carriers that are about to be launched, leaves room for some doubts, if not some concern.
(images: US Navy)
