Air Power, Insurgency and the “War on Terror” - Prof. Joel Hayward's ...

The use of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Power</strong> Today: Have New Ethical Challenges Occurred?
Precision: Good or Bad?
Precision characterises much of modern air power. The development <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> increased
use of precision munitions <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir accuracy have raised public expectations of air power
as a humane weapon. Its ability to deliver lethal <strong>and</strong> precise power over vast distances has
increased. Simultaneously new <strong>and</strong> enhanced technology is enabling air power to operate
over even greater distances.
Charles Dunlap Jr warns us to look at <strong>the</strong> future use of air power as described above:
Recent scientific developments raise hopes that Twenty-first century
warfare – if not avoided altoge<strong>the</strong>r – might never<strong>the</strong>less be waged
in a more humane manner. Much of this optimism is traceable to
<strong>the</strong> Gulf war [1990/1991] where <strong>the</strong> application of high technology
seemed to minimize allied <strong>and</strong> Iraqi casualties [civilian] alike. Key
to this perception of war where <strong>the</strong> widely televised images of
precision-guided munitions (PGMs). 519
He claims that such optimistic predictions will remain unfulfilled, but will create
worse problems. 520
The promise of Discrimination <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Expectation of a Clean War
The technological development of air power has given it <strong>the</strong> ability to identify targets,
illuminate <strong>the</strong>m <strong>and</strong> guide weapons against <strong>the</strong>m with a high degree of precision.
Technology has also made it possible for pilots <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs to rapidly see <strong>the</strong> result of
<strong>the</strong> bombing <strong>and</strong> evaluate <strong>the</strong> need for re-allocation of <strong>the</strong> target. The improvement <strong>and</strong>
advance of precision-guided munitions (PGMs), coupled with <strong>the</strong> all-wea<strong>the</strong>r capability
of sensors, can be seen as a step in <strong>the</strong> right direction to adapt air power to <strong>the</strong> moral
principles of “Just War”. 521 In <strong>the</strong> ethical context, <strong>the</strong> use of PGMs is a step in <strong>the</strong> right
direction to prevent collateral damage. This is underlined by James Turner Johnson, who
claims that “smart weapons” reduce <strong>the</strong> risk of killing non-combatants. 522 Not only do <strong>the</strong>y
reduce <strong>the</strong> risk of incorrect bombing, but <strong>the</strong>y fur<strong>the</strong>r reduce <strong>the</strong> number of munitions
required to destroy individual targets, <strong>and</strong> also fur<strong>the</strong>r reduce <strong>the</strong> need to repeat combat
missions <strong>and</strong> minimise <strong>the</strong> exposure of <strong>the</strong> aircrew to danger. 523 It can be claimed that
precision in air power weapons today compared to <strong>the</strong>ir predecessors makes <strong>the</strong>m more
discriminate <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>refore in accordance with <strong>the</strong> principles of proportionality <strong>and</strong>
discrimination. From a historical perspective <strong>the</strong> use of precision weapons can be viewed
as a reduction in <strong>the</strong> use of force, making weapons more morally acceptable. 524
Is Risk-free War lowering <strong>the</strong> Force Threshold?
In his book, The Future of War? Christopher Coker argues that <strong>the</strong>re are features in
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<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Power</strong>, <strong>Insurgency</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> “War on Terror”