The Quest for Relevant Air Power

108 │ French Air Force
Both in the air and on the ground, cooperation between the two
contingents was very tight. For instance, the American fighter aircraft
were air-to-air refuelled by the French tanker aircraft based
in Manas. 149 Within seven months, French Mirages logged 4,500
flying hours and 900 sorties, destroying or neutralizing 32 targets.
150 The French contingent at Manas significantly reduced the
logistical footprint by substantially drawing on regional supply,
quite in contrast to the American approach. 151
French participation in the early stages of Operation Enduring
Freedom was not limited to combat, reconnaissance, and
tanker aircraft. The French transport command very early established
an air bridge to Central Asia and was amongst the first to
conduct night flights into Mazar-i-Sharif under extremely adverse
circumstances. 152
In the ensuing years, the FAF has continued to deploy combat
aircraft to Asia for both Operation Enduring Freedom and the
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). In August 2007,
the FAF Central Asia detachment, Serpentaire, began redeployment
from Dushanbe, Tajikistan, to Kandahar to reduce transit
time and to increase NATO’s firepower in the southern Afghan
provinces. The detachment has usually been comprised of a total
of six combat aircraft, normally combining three Mirage 2000Ds
with either three Mirage F1s or three Rafales. The Air Force’s
Rafales, in concert with the French Navy’s Rafales operating
from the Charles de Gaulle, saw action over Afghanistan in
March 2007 for the first time. 153
French Interventions in Africa
As during the Cold War, French operations in Africa have generally
been autonomous national operations. In many cases,
French forces have intervened to temporarily stabilize hotspots or
to evacuate Western citizens. As these operations have required
quick reaction, power projection by air has proved indispensable
for mission success. Besides airlift, the FAF has often provided
combat aircraft, giving the lean French ground force deployments
a decisive edge in firepower.
Already during the Gulf crisis in 1990–91, French troops were
simultaneously involved in crisis management operations in
Rwanda. 154 This can be considered a precursor to Operation Tur-