As a further precaution the JCS ordered Rear Adm. James E. Service—a veteran attack pilot who served concurrently as commander of Carrier Group Two, as commander of Battle Force Sixth Fleet (also known as Task Force 60), and as the officer in tactical command (OTC) of the upcoming exercise—to Washington for discussions on the operational details of the exercise and the circumstances under which his task force, particularly his aircrews, could engage a hostile military force. On 12 and 14 August the U.S. government issued a notice to airmen and mariners that announced that live missile firings would be conducted in a 3,200-square-mile hexagonal area of the Mediterranean on 18 and 19 August. The exercise area included a section of the disputed waters south of 32° 30’.71
Not surprisingly, the Libyan government protested the planned exercise, calling it a violation of Libya’s territorial waters and airspace. In addition, one Libyan official accused the United States of coordinating the movement of the Sixth Fleet with Egyptian military forces that were conducting maneuvers near the Egyptian-Libyan frontier.72 Newsweek, in the issue that arrived at newsstands on 17 August, substantiated this accusation when it reported that “Washington officials are . . . eager to see how Qaddafi will react to what they insist is a coincidence: Egyptian troops will conduct maneuvers along the Libyan border at the same time.” Two days before OOMEX started Egypt canceled its plans for a military exercise near the Libyan border, fearing that if its maneuvers took place at the same time as the Sixth Fleet exercise Qaddafi might conclude that he was under a two-pronged attack and respond irrationally.73
The Open Ocean Missile Exercise
For the two-day surface and air exercise Rear Admiral Service commanded a large battle force consisting of the carriers Nimitz (CVN 68) and Forrestal (CV 59); Carrier Air Wings (CVW) 8 and 17 based on the Nimitz and the Forrestal, respectively; and thirteen escort and support ships.74 The planned highlight of OOMEX was the destruction of target drones by Sparrow and Sidewinder air-to-air missiles fired from fighter aircraft and Standard surface-to-air missiles launched by the nuclear-powered guided missile cruisers Texas (CGN 39) and Mississippi (CGN 40). In addition to carrying out the missile exercise and the FON operation Admiral Service was fully prepared to intercept and escort all Libyan aircraft and naval vessels that approached the exercise area and, if necessary, to perform armed defense of the battle force.
With his carriers in position north of 32° 30’ Service commenced OOMEX in the early hours of 18 August. Several F-14 Tomcats from the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Nimitz and F-4J Phantom IIs from the Forrestal catapulted into the morning sky and established a barrier of seven combat air patrol (CAP) stations between Libya and the battle force. The two Tomcat squadrons based on the Nimitz were the “Black Aces” of Fighter Squadron (VF) 41 and the “Jolly Rogers” of VF-84. The “Bedevilers” of VF-74 and the “Fighting Silver Eagles” of Marine Fighter-Attack Squadron (VMFA) 115 flew Phantoms off the Forrestal Pairs of F-14s filled four stations; pairs of F-4Js filled the other three. One Tomcat CAP station was located below 32° 30’. All of the U.S. aircraft operated in the Tripoli Flight Information Region (FIR), a Libyan-claimed air defense zone that extended out well into the central Mediterranean. The northern boundary of the zone was the 34th parallel. Within the FIR all aircraft were required to identify themselves to Libyan air traffic controllers.
At daybreak the guided missile destroyer William V. Pratt (DDG 44) and the destroyer Caron (DD 970) steamed south of 32° 30’ and operated in the Gulf of Sidra for the next thirty-four hours.75 For the duration of the exercise Qaddafi was in Aden conducting an official visit to South Yemen. According to U.S. intelligence Qaddafi had left Tripoli before the start of the exercise and had arrived in the capital of South Yemen earlier than planned. While in Aden he signed a treaty of cooperation with Ethiopia and South Yemen, effectively uniting three of the most radical states in the Middle East and Africa. A CIA analysis of the pact found that the tripartite alliance significantly increased the threat to U.S. interests in northeast Africa. According to the analysts a quick look at a map of the region showed U.S. allies Egypt and Sudan caught between Libya on the west and Ethiopia and South Yemen on the east. According to the terms of the treaty Qaddafi pledged hundreds of millions of dollars in economic and military assistance to his partners, and the three countries agreed to maintain a reserve military force of five thousand Libyan, five thousand Yemeni, and fifty thousand Ethiopian troops.
In Qaddafi’s absence his lieutenants reacted swiftly to the American flight operations taking place in the Tripoli FIR and the northern section of the Gulf of Sidra.76 On the first day of the exercise an assortment of aircraft from the Libyan Arab Air Force—consisting of French-built Mirage F-1s and Mirage F-5Ds, and Soviet-made MiG-23 Flogger Es and MiG-25 Foxbat As—took off from bases along the Libyan coast and flew as close as possible to the American battle force. The F-14 and F-4J crews performed thirty-five intercepts of seventy Libyan aircraft operating in pairs. Several of the intercepts evolved into “hassles,” which is fighter pilot jargon for simulated dogfights. Most LAAF pilots turned back before entering the exercise zone, but on three occasions Libyan MiGs entered the restricted area and each time forced the fleet to suspend its missile-firing exercise. Navy fighters closely escorted each intruder until well clear of the exercise area.77
Most of the aviators in the battle force were too young to have flown combat missions in Vietnam, but the first day of OOMEX provided U.S. fighter crews with an excellent opportunity to practice combat maneuvering against a potential adversary flying Soviet- or French-built aircraft. The Americans noted that in general the Mirage pilots were more proficient at evasive maneuvering than the MiG pilots and were more difficult to intercept and hold in formation. Some Navy airmen speculated that the difference might have been due to the quality of the training provided by the French compared to that supplied by the Soviets.78
ABC News correspondent John K. Cooley was in Tripoli during the Sixth Fleet exercise. On the evening of 18 August he observed Libyan television announcers whip up the residents of Tripoli into a terrified frenzy with reports that the CIA was planning to overthrow or kill Qaddafi, that the American battle fleet was sailing toward Libya, that Egypt and Sudan were preparing to attack Libya with American support, and that the Libyan armed forces had been placed on high alert.79 All of this, of course, was unknown to the aviators in the battle force who were preparing for another full day of flight operations over the Gulf of Sidra. The second day of OOMEX promised to be just as exciting as the first.
The Gulf of Sidra Incident
At 0545 local time on 19 August, the Nimitz and the Forrestal ordered their crews to flight quarters. By 0600 the ordnance men had armed the planes, and the aircrews had completed their mission briefings and were manning their aircraft. There was a gentle breeze that morning, and the forecast called for a deep blue sky that would provide clear visibility for several miles. The Nimitz and the Forrestal launched six F-14 Tomcats and four F-4J Phantoms, respectively. The ten fighters were to fill five CAP stations by first light. Tomcats from VF-41 were to occupy the three southern stations, while four Phantoms of VF-74 were to fill the remaining two. Both carriers launched antisubmarine aircraft to guard against the Libyan fleet of Soviet-built diesel submarines and attack aircraft for armed surveillance of Libyan surface vessels. This latter assignment was known as surface combat air patrol (SUCAP) and carried the code name “birddog.” An unarmed E-2C Hawkeye from Carrier Airborne Early-Warning Squadron (VAW) 124 based on the Nimitz took station in the northern portion of the exercise area, out of the reach of Libyan fighters. Its mission was to provide long-range surveillance and fighter control for the battle force. Finally, the carriers launched KA-6D tankers to extend the on-station time of the CAP aircraft.
The Black Aces of VF-41 flew the most capable fighter plane in the world. The Tomcat’s AN / AWG-9 radar could detect targets nearly two hundred miles away, and the aircraft’s weapons control system could track twenty-four targets and simultaneously engage six with AIM-54C Phoenix missiles. During