The Quest for Relevant Air Power

240 │ ROYAL NETHERLANDS Air Force
operations across the spectrum of military force, and the RNLAF
was able to respond effectively to the challenges of real operations.
Overall, Desert Storm was not so much about a paradigm change,
as in the case of the FAF, but a matter of recalibrating already existing
Dutch defence capabilities. It is noteworthy that in doctrine
development and the acquisition of an air-to-ground precision
strike capability, Operations Deny Flight and Deliberate Force
proved to be more critical for the RNLAF than Desert Storm (as is
analysed later). Hence, there appears to be a difference between
just observing an operation and fully participating in it.
While the RNLAF could not immediately contribute to Desert
Storm, it did so indirectly. After Iraq invaded Kuwait in August
1990, NATO decided to send Patriot units to Turkey for protection
against Iraqi SCUD missiles. Two Dutch Patriot missile batteries
were sent to Diyarbakir in eastern Turkey. This deployment
was soon to be reinforced with two more Hawk missile squadrons
and Stinger units. The RNLAF also deployed a Patriot missile battery
to Israel. 88 Whereas Dutch fighter aircraft were not able to
participate in Operation Desert Storm, the rapid deployment of
Patriot and Hawk missile units was a clear sign of the Netherlands
government’s willingness to actively contribute to international
crisis management. Moreover, Patriot deployments in the TBMD
role fitted with NATO’s new extended air defence and rapid deployment
concepts. With the Cold War over, the RNLAF’s guided
missile units were withdrawn from the Deep Multi-Layered
NATO Integrated Air Defence System in Germany and freed for
out-of-area operations. 89
When Operation Deny Flight was launched on 12 April 1993,
Dutch F-16s and US Navy F/A-18s flew the first CAP missions
over Bosnia on the same day. A mere 10 days later, RNLAF F-16s
were among the first to fly night CAP missions. The initial Dutch
detachment consisted of 18 F-16s, roughly 10 per cent of the
overall allied commitment to Operation Deny Flight. After the
UN had authorised air-to-ground strikes including CAS in mid-
1993, Dutch F-16s were prepared for the execution of these missions.
The RNLAF’s fighter-bombers were basically configured
for three roles—air defence, air-to-ground strikes, and tactical
reconnaissance. 90 The first air strikes against ground targets by
Dutch F-16 aircraft were conducted on 21 November 1994. The