The Quest for Relevant Air Power

ROYAL NETHERLANDS Air Force │ 241
strikes were directed at the airfield at Udbina in the Kraijna region.
In the planning process, RNLAF personnel played a key
role, and a Dutch major acted as the overall tactical mission
commander during the attack itself. 91
In the Srebrenica massacre in July 1995, where lightly armed
Dutch peacekeepers played a controversial role, the inflexible
chain of command—wherein NATO and UN consent were required—delayed
air strikes. By the time Dutch F-16s were authorised
to attack ground targets, Srebrenica had already been overrun
by Bosnian Serb troops. 92
During Operation Deliberate Force, RNLAF F-16s were again
used in a wide spectrum of missions covering air defence and airto-ground
strikes, as well as reconnaissance missions. 93 Out of a
total of 1,026 weapons released, the RNLAF accounted for approximately
13 per cent, with Dutch F-16s exclusively dropping unguided
bombs. 94 In an interview with the author, a high-ranking
RNLAF officer explained that Dutch F-16s had been able to place
unguided bombs accurately by diving below the minimum flight
altitude. Yet putting a premium upon avoiding unintended harm
and destruction, the American air component commander assigned
targets involving less risk of collateral damage to NATO air
forces without precision weapons at their disposal. 95
The RNLAF displayed further distinct national approaches to
air power in the air campaigns over Bosnia. Towards the end of
the Cold War, the RNLAF introduced the so-called swing-role
concept. According to this concept, aircraft and pilot can execute
multiple tasks on the same sortie. 96 While other European F-16
customers were employing the aircraft in one fixed role only, the
RNLAF had been exploring the swing-role concept since the mid-
1980s. 97 All Dutch F-16 pilots have been trained in both the air-toair
and air-to-ground roles. 98 Because Dutch F-16s could be retasked
while executing a mission, the CAOC at Vicenza, Italy, had
some extra leeway. 99 During Deliberate Force, on several occasions
RNLAF F-16s were flying air defence missions with bombs
attached to their underwing pylons and, minutes later, were rerolled
for an air-to-ground mission. 100
Dutch aircrews put a premium upon flexibility not only for the
swing-role concept but also for force packaging. When it was announced
in November 1994 that all missions had to be escorted