US military used Vietnam-era warplanes against Daesh
The US military has used a pair of Vietnam-era warplanes in its air campaign against the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group.
US Central Command Spokesman Bryant Davis said that almost 50-year old OV-10 Bronco turbo-propeller planes flew 120 combat missions against Daesh targets as an experiment to see if "light turbo-prop aircraft" are more effective in the operations, CNN reported on Friday.
He explained that the results of the experiment have been passed on to the Office of the Secretary of Defense Joint Requirements Oversight Council and that the information will help Pentagon "decision makers determine if this is a valid concept that would be effective in the current battlespace."
“Because the report is still a draft, it would be inappropriate and premature to provide details regarding any findings or potential recommendations," he added.
Retired naval aviator Chris Harmer also told CNN that using the retired warplanes are much more cost-effective alternative than jets like the F-15 or F-35. The old jets could cost less than $5,000 per flight.
Harmer, however, admitted that the warplanes are vulnerable to other modern aircraft and anti-aircraft missiles.
He said using an F-35 jet in air campaign against Daesh would be akin to "buying a brand new Rolls Royce to take the garbage to the dump."
The US has been leading a campaign of airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, claiming the attacks target ISIL positions.
However, the US-led coalition has done little to stop the Daesh's advances in parts of Syria and in Iraq.
Some analysts have criticized the US-led military campaign, saying the strikes are only meant to benefit US weapons manufacturers.
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