By Christopher Miskimon
During the 1980s, Libyan dictator Muamar Qaddafi began an undeclared war against the United States, supporting terrorist attacks and sponsoring various terror groups in the Middle East. His reasoning and actions became so chaotic even his allies considered him unstable. The situation became critical for the U.S. when a bomb exploded at the La Belle Discotheque in West Berlin, Germany, on April 5, 1986. In response, the USAF launched two dozen F-111 and five EF-111s from bases in the UK on April 14. They flew 3,500 miles after France and Spain refused to allow overflight of their territory. As they approached Libya the U.S. Navy launched a strike with 26 fighter and attack aircraft. These planes struck two military airfields, two barracks, and a terrorist training camp. The Libyans proved able to down a single F-111.
This new book is an excellent recounting of the U.S. air attack on Libya in 1986. It will be of great interest to military aviation enthusiasts in particular, due to the author’s experience and familiarity with the operation, aircraft, weapons and systems used in the attack. The beautifully illustrated volume also has extensive political and military background on events surrounding the operation.
Operation El Dorado Canyon: The 1986 U.S. Bombing Raid on Libya (Maj. Jim Rotramel, USAF, Ret’d, Harpia Publishing, Wien, Austria, 2024, 254 pp., maps, photographs, notes, appendices, bibliography, index, $64.95, SC)
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