The aircraft, designed for a Soviet threat in Europe, were perfectly suited for penetrating Iraqi airspace, which relied almost entirely on Soviet air defense systems. In the early morning of January 17, 1991, 10 F-117 Nighthawks slipped through the air over Iraq. It examines the path that led to the Air Force’s overcommitment to stealth, unravels the assumptions that led to that commitment, and offers alternatives that are more broadly applicable to tomorrow’s airpower challenges while remaining affordable and technologically feasible. The series, titled “Stuck on Denial,” addresses the root of the Air Force’s combat aircraft procurement problem - that the service remains stuck in the denial phase of the grieving process over the vision of an exquisite, all-stealth force.
Note: This article is the first of a series addressing the challenges facing the Air Force’s combat aviation capabilities in the future.
