Book Review of
Operation Allied Force
Air War Over Serbia 1999, Vol. 1
Authors: Bojan Dimitrijevic &
Lt-Gen. Jovica Draganic
Helion & Co. Ltd.
Europe@War Series No. 11
ISBN: 978-1-914059-18-6
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright: 2021
MSRP: $24.95
Europe@War Series No. 11
ISBN: 978-1-914059-18-6
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright: 2021
MSRP: $24.95
On 24 March 1999, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) launched Operation Allied Force against Serbia.
Lasting 78 days, this was an unusual conflict fought at several levels. The campaign was fought at the negotiation tables, in the media, and via cyber warfare. In the air, NATO sought to destroy or at least minimize the capability of the Serbian forces, while on the ground the Serbian forces fought the Kosovo-Albanian insurgency.
It also had an unusual outcome, without losing any service personnel in direct action, NATO still forced the Serbian forces and armed forces to withdraw from Kosovo, which in 2008 then proclaimed its independence. In turn, the war inflicted serious human and material losses upon the Serbians and their air force was particularly devastated by air strikes on its facilities.
Nevertheless, many within NATO subsequently concluded that the skies over Serbia were as dangerous on the last night of this conflict as they were on its first.
Largely based on cooperation with the joint commission of the Serbian Air Force and the U.S. Air Force in Europe (USAFE), Volume 1 of Operation Allied Force provides a detailed overview of NATO’s aerial campaign, including reconstructions of the planning and conduct of combat operations by the Serbian Air Force and Air Defence (Ratno vazduhoplovstvo I protiv vazdusna odbrana, (RV I PVO), with a special emphasis on the attempts of its sole Mig-29 squadron and its surface to air missile batteries to challenge enemy strike packages.
The volume is fully illustrated in colour (not true-there are 17 black and white illustrations), with a rich collection of exclusive photographs from both sides of the conflict, along with an extended 16-page section of custom-drawn full-colour artworks, and provides a set of entirely new and unique insights into what was the last war fought in Europe during the 20th century.
THE BOOK:
Helion & Co Ltd. is based in the U.K.
This book is soft-cover of 96 pages in 8 ¼” x 11 ¾” page format.
It begins with an ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, ABBREVIATIONS and FORWARD. There are 12 maps. A 2 1/2 page BIBLIOGRAPHY and 2 1/2 pages of NOTES.
113 illustrations are in color and 17 in black and white.
The colour profiles show 45 aircraft, a NATO P-12 “Spoon Rest” surveillance- radar cart, a NATO SNR-125 “Low Blow” fire-control radar device and a Serbian S-125 Nova M (SA-3 Goa) surface to air missile with a standard V-601 missile.
There are (including the covers) 66 aircraft shown, 35 of them with pilots or ground crews around them, 5 photos of generals, 3 detail lists, 3 photos of helicopters, 5 photos of radar devices, a photo of the U.S.S. Kearsarge aircraft carrier, a photo of a tank, 2 photos of U.S. Navy ships launching cruise-missiles, 10 photos of battle damage to the Serbians, a photo of U.S. troops inspecting the site of a crashed Mig-29, 2 color photos of a middle launcher, a SNR-129 missile control unit, the wreckage of a F-117A “Nighthawk” stealth fighter, a Marconi S600 radar unit, a missile crew, a R13M rocket launcher “Low Blow” unit, buildings of the Yugoslavian general staff, destroyed radar, a destroyed NJ-22 Orao rocket launcher, part of a downed F-16C’s wing, a photo of president Clinton, a photo of EA-16B “Prowlers” aboard U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier.
The colour aircraft profiles include:
A RAF Mi-24 helicopter
A Serbian Soko G-4 Galeb and Soko J-22 Orao
A Serbian Mig-21S
Two Serbian Mig-29’s
A NATO Boeing E3-A “Sentry”
A RAF EC-30E and a KC-135 tanker
Two of an Allied Lockheed F-117A stealth fighter, including squadron logos
Three of Allied F-15C’s and one each of a F-15E and B-2A
Two of a U.S. B-52H
Two of an Allied B-15
Three of an Allied F-16J, including squadron logos
Two of an Allied Fairchild F-10 “Thunderbolt”, including squadron logos
A U.S. Marines Grumman EA-6B “Prowler”, including a squadron logo
Two of a U.S. F-14A “Tomcat”, including squadron logos.
Two of a U.S. F/A-18C “Hornet”, including squadron logos
A U.S. EA-6B, including a squadron logo
A Boeing-Vertol CH-46G “Sea Knight”, including a squadron logo
A French Jaguar, including a squadron logo
A Allied Dassault-Mirage FI-CT, including a squadron logo
A French Mirage 2000D and IVP, including a squadron logo.
A German Tornado, including a squadron logo
An Allied F-16 AM
A Royal Canadian Air Force CF-188A “Hornet”, including a squadron logo
A Norwegian F-16 AM
A British Harrier GR MK. 7
A British Tornado GR. Mk.1/1A/1B
A U.S. McDonnell-Douglas EF-18 “Hornet”
These are neat colour aircraft illustrations.
This book will be of much interest to modelers and aviation historians alike.
I sincerely wish to thank Casemate Publishers for this review sample. All Helion & Co. LTD. books can be viewed on Casemate’s website at:
Lasting 78 days, this was an unusual conflict fought at several levels. The campaign was fought at the negotiation tables, in the media, and via cyber warfare. In the air, NATO sought to destroy or at least minimize the capability of the Serbian forces, while on the ground the Serbian forces fought the Kosovo-Albanian insurgency.
It also had an unusual outcome, without losing any service personnel in direct action, NATO still forced the Serbian forces and armed forces to withdraw from Kosovo, which in 2008 then proclaimed its independence. In turn, the war inflicted serious human and material losses upon the Serbians and their air force was particularly devastated by air strikes on its facilities.
Nevertheless, many within NATO subsequently concluded that the skies over Serbia were as dangerous on the last night of this conflict as they were on its first.
Largely based on cooperation with the joint commission of the Serbian Air Force and the U.S. Air Force in Europe (USAFE), Volume 1 of Operation Allied Force provides a detailed overview of NATO’s aerial campaign, including reconstructions of the planning and conduct of combat operations by the Serbian Air Force and Air Defence (Ratno vazduhoplovstvo I protiv vazdusna odbrana, (RV I PVO), with a special emphasis on the attempts of its sole Mig-29 squadron and its surface to air missile batteries to challenge enemy strike packages.
The volume is fully illustrated in colour (not true-there are 17 black and white illustrations), with a rich collection of exclusive photographs from both sides of the conflict, along with an extended 16-page section of custom-drawn full-colour artworks, and provides a set of entirely new and unique insights into what was the last war fought in Europe during the 20th century.
THE BOOK:
Helion & Co Ltd. is based in the U.K.
This book is soft-cover of 96 pages in 8 ¼” x 11 ¾” page format.
It begins with an ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, ABBREVIATIONS and FORWARD. There are 12 maps. A 2 1/2 page BIBLIOGRAPHY and 2 1/2 pages of NOTES.
113 illustrations are in color and 17 in black and white.
The colour profiles show 45 aircraft, a NATO P-12 “Spoon Rest” surveillance- radar cart, a NATO SNR-125 “Low Blow” fire-control radar device and a Serbian S-125 Nova M (SA-3 Goa) surface to air missile with a standard V-601 missile.
There are (including the covers) 66 aircraft shown, 35 of them with pilots or ground crews around them, 5 photos of generals, 3 detail lists, 3 photos of helicopters, 5 photos of radar devices, a photo of the U.S.S. Kearsarge aircraft carrier, a photo of a tank, 2 photos of U.S. Navy ships launching cruise-missiles, 10 photos of battle damage to the Serbians, a photo of U.S. troops inspecting the site of a crashed Mig-29, 2 color photos of a middle launcher, a SNR-129 missile control unit, the wreckage of a F-117A “Nighthawk” stealth fighter, a Marconi S600 radar unit, a missile crew, a R13M rocket launcher “Low Blow” unit, buildings of the Yugoslavian general staff, destroyed radar, a destroyed NJ-22 Orao rocket launcher, part of a downed F-16C’s wing, a photo of president Clinton, a photo of EA-16B “Prowlers” aboard U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier.
The colour aircraft profiles include:
A RAF Mi-24 helicopter
A Serbian Soko G-4 Galeb and Soko J-22 Orao
A Serbian Mig-21S
Two Serbian Mig-29’s
A NATO Boeing E3-A “Sentry”
A RAF EC-30E and a KC-135 tanker
Two of an Allied Lockheed F-117A stealth fighter, including squadron logos
Three of Allied F-15C’s and one each of a F-15E and B-2A
Two of a U.S. B-52H
Two of an Allied B-15
Three of an Allied F-16J, including squadron logos
Two of an Allied Fairchild F-10 “Thunderbolt”, including squadron logos
A U.S. Marines Grumman EA-6B “Prowler”, including a squadron logo
Two of a U.S. F-14A “Tomcat”, including squadron logos.
Two of a U.S. F/A-18C “Hornet”, including squadron logos
A U.S. EA-6B, including a squadron logo
A Boeing-Vertol CH-46G “Sea Knight”, including a squadron logo
A French Jaguar, including a squadron logo
A Allied Dassault-Mirage FI-CT, including a squadron logo
A French Mirage 2000D and IVP, including a squadron logo.
A German Tornado, including a squadron logo
An Allied F-16 AM
A Royal Canadian Air Force CF-188A “Hornet”, including a squadron logo
A Norwegian F-16 AM
A British Harrier GR MK. 7
A British Tornado GR. Mk.1/1A/1B
A U.S. McDonnell-Douglas EF-18 “Hornet”
These are neat colour aircraft illustrations.
This book will be of much interest to modelers and aviation historians alike.
I sincerely wish to thank Casemate Publishers for this review sample. All Helion & Co. LTD. books can be viewed on Casemate’s website at:
Very highly recommended.