The RAF Does Not have The Means To Sustain An Air Campaign Against The Islamic State

Photo: Heathcliff O'Malley/The Telegraph

The RAF Is Too Run-Down For The Campaign Against Islamic State -- Con Coughlin, The Telegraph

Britain had 30 combat squadrons at the start of the 1991 war in Iraq – today it has only seven.

So here we go again: we’re counting the RAF Tornado GR4 warplanes as they take off from Cyprus to attack Islamic fighters in Iraq; and then we’re counting them safely back to base. Only this time, our main interest is focused not so much on the number of warplanes flying back from their combat missions, but whether any of them have actually managed to drop their bombs on the enemy.

Even at this early stage of Gulf War Three, as the military operation against Islamic State has somewhat ambitiously been labelled, it is pretty clear that it bears no relation to the two conflicts that preceded it.

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Update: British Combat Planes No Match for Islamic State Ground Attacks: Reports -- RIA Novosti

My Comment: I guess Con Coughlin's post got someone's attention in the MOD, the RAF did their first bombing run today .... RAF bombing of Iraq begins -- The Telegraph