Air Policing

Air Policing lessons are being lost through the generations. Air Policing is a forgotten concept in the modern day thinking and military planning within the United States Air Force. A modern Air Policing interpretation and approach may just provide the valuable capabilities needed to assist the often neglected "Phase IV" and "Phase V" campaign phases that focus on the transition between war and peace. Through case study analysis of several military conflicts over the last hundred years, it can be determined that Air Policing, if understood fully and applied properly, may fulfill a niche requirement in these circumstances. Air Policing principles may prove invaluable in finding both a militarily viable and politically acceptable path towards peace in future conflicts. Through analysis of the conflicts involving the British Air Control of Mesopotamia, the US withdrawal from Vietnam, Operation SOUTHERN WATCH, Operation NOBLE EAGLE, and Alaska NORAD Region Homeland Defense Alert Operations, the basic principles of modern day Air Policing at the operational and tactical levels were distilled.