The Wild West Air War: Strike Eagle Crews Over Libya

10PCT Episode #90This is an interview recorded as part of my research for Twenty Years at War - the second part of my series of coffee table books on the F-15E Strike Eagle: https://www.10percenttrue.com/product-page/tyaw-pre-orderFour F-15E veterans — “Deuce” Cooper, “Funkle” Esler, “NAILS” Ashmore and “Leroy” Domberg — reunite to discuss Operation Odyssey Dawn and the opening phase of the Libya air war in 2011. What begins as a discussion about Libya quickly becomes a broader conversation about the Strike Eagle community’s transition from the highly restrictive, JTAC-driven wars in Iraq and Afghanistan back to dynamic targeting, SCAR, coalition strike operations and independent decision-making. The group recounts the rapid deployment from RAF Lakenheath, the uncertainty surrounding Libyan air defences, the first night over Benghazi, the loss of BOLAR 34, the evolution of tactics during the campaign, and the lessons that would later shape operations against ISIS and beyond. Along the way they discuss mission planning, coalition integration, the value of the two-seat cockpit, targeting pods, radar development, CCA concepts and the future of the Strike Eagle.