While the first volume in this mini-series spanned the first decade of
confrontations between Libya and several of its neighbors, but foremost
the USA and France, between 1973 and 1985, the second is to cover the
period of less than a year - between mid-1985 and March 1986, when this
confrontation reached its first climax.
Through mid and late 1985, relations between France and Libya became
tense over the situation in Chad. By early 1986, the French felt forced
to deploy their air force for an airstrike on the crucial Libyan air
base at Wadi Doum, in the north of that country. Tripoli reacted with a
high-profile aerial attack on N'Djamena IAP and by bolstering support
for its proxies. This eventually provoked Paris to launch its third
military intervention in that country, Operation Épervier.
Meanwhile, a series of terror attacks on US citizens and interests in
Europe and the Mediterranean area took place. While most of these saw
the involvement of Iran and Syria too, Libya was recognized as major
supporter of the activities in question. In the aftermath of several
traumatic experiences, the US administration began planning for direct
action against the government in Tripoli and various terrorist
organizations supported by it. As the Pentagon planners prepared a
contingency list of targets in Libya, and the US Air Force began
planning its involvement, ships and aircraft of the US Navy launched
intensive operations off the Libyan coast with the aim of provoking an
incident that could be used as a reason for major military attack on
Libya. Eventually, these operations culminated in Operation Prairie
Fire - a series of short but sharp clashes between the US Navy and
Libyan air defenses and the Navy, in March 1986.
Part 2 of this mini-series provides an unprecedentedly detailed and
richly illustrated description of the involved air forces, their
equipment and markings, and related military aerial operations, many of
which have remained unknown until today, while others have been
forgotten outright.
