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Libya
Encounters with the United States
In 1973 Qadhafi claimed the Gulf of Sidra to be within Libyan
territorial waters by drawing a straight line between a point
near Benghazi and the western headland of the gulf at Misratah
. His claim was not generally accepted, although only the United
States presented a direct challenge by declaring that its ships
would continue to regard all areas beyond a distance of 12 nautical
miles from the coast as international waters. On several occasions,
Libyan fighter planes harassed United States planes from carriers
maneuvering in the area. When the United States Sixth Fleet began
exercises in August 1981, Libyan fighter planes were assembled
from elsewhere in the country to fly patrols near the American
ships. On August 19, two Su-22 fighter-bombers were intercepted
by two F-14 Tomcat fighters from the aircraft carrier Nimitz.
While trying to escort the Libyans out of the exercise area, one
of the American planes was the target of an air-to-air Atoll missile
but was able to evade it. Both Libyan planes were then shot down
with Sidewinder missiles launched by the Tomcats. The two Libyan
pilots managed to eject and were rescued from the sea. The ease
with which the American planes disposed of their attackers demonstrated
that the earlier generation Su-22 and its Atoll missile could
not prevail against more sophisticated United States equipment.
Tensions between the two countries mounted after the hijacking
of a TWA airliner at Beirut in July 1985 and bombing attacks at
American airline counters at Rome and Vienna in December of that
year. Qadhafi was implicated in these actions through his patronage
of the alleged perpetrator, the Palestinian terrorist Abu Nidal
(see International Terrorism and Support for Insurgent Groups
, this ch.). The Libyans also began installing batteries of SA-5
missiles acquired from the Soviet Union in late 1985, along with
associated radar, to augment their air defense capabilities. United
States naval vessels continued to challenge Qadhafi's claim to
the Gulf of Sidra, periodically crossing the line of Libyan territorial
claim, which he came to refer to as the "line of death" .
Three carrier task forces of the Sixth Fleet with 225 aircraft
assembled off the Libyan coast for maneuvers in March 1986. On
March 24, six SA-5s were launched from the new missile base at
Surt against American aircraft. None was hit, however, because
the SA-5, with a range of 240 kilometers, could threaten high-altitude
reconnaissance aircraft over the Gulf of Sidra but was relatively
ineffective against high-performance jet fighters. Subsequently,
the missile site was put out of action by carrier-based A-6 Intruders
firing High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARMs), that homed
in on the Libyans' radar guidance signals. A second strike followed
the next day to knock out a replacement radar unit. Although Soviet
technicians were believed to be present to oversee the installation
and operation of the SA-5 batteries, none was reported injured
in the exchanges.
At the same time, a French-built Combattante-class missile attack
craft was destroyed when it approached United States Navy ships
protecting the aircraft carriers. The Libyan vessel was hit by
two Harpoon missiles launched from an A-7 Corsair aircraft. The
most serious loss for the Libyans was one of the eight Sovietsupplied
Nanuchka-class missile corvettes in an attack by two A-6s shortly
after midnight on March 26. A total of five attacks was carried
out on Libyan ships.
Ten days later, on April 5, 1986, a bomb exploded in a discotheque
in Berlin frequented by United States service personnel. Of the
200 injured, 63 were American soldiers; one soldier and one civilian
were killed. Messages intercepted by the United States, including
one from the Libyan mission in East Berlin, furnished what the
United States government described as evidence of Libyan involvement
in the bombing, which was probably carried out by the Abu Nidal
organization.
On April 15, the United States retaliated by attacking military
installations in Benghazi and Tripoli. Eighteen FB-111 bombers,
supported by four EF-111 electronic countermeasures aircraft,
left England, refueling several times enroute, and struck the
Tripoli airport, a frogman training center at the naval academy,
and the nearby al Aziziyah barracks, where Qadhafi often resided.
The aircraft carriers Coral Sea and America
launched twenty-four A-6 and F/A-18 Hornet strike aircraft against
radar and antiaircraft sites at Benghazi before hitting the Benina
military airfield and the Jamahiriya barracks. A number of casualties
also occurred in residential areas of Benghazi and several Western
embassies were damaged.
Several transport aircraft and some Soviet-built MiG-23 fighters
and helicopters were destroyed on the ground at the two airfields.
The only loss among the American attackers was one FB111 that
failed to return to its base in England. Although retaliation
for the Berlin bombing had been anticipated, Libyan air defenses
seemed almost wholly unprepared for the attack. In fact, it was
reported that antiaircraft fire had not begun until after the
American planes had passed over their targets at Tripoli. It was
reported that some Libyan soldiers abandoned their posts in fright
and confusion and officers were slow to give orders. Also, Libyans
fighters failed to get airborne to challenge the attacking bombers.
Data as of 1987
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