The ground fighting continues northwest of Tbilisi, but the Georgian Army has managed to slow the Russian and Separatist advances and are currently dug in on the western outskirts of Igoeti. Even though there has been little progress in either direction on the ground, Russian airpower and artillery are constantly pounding Georgian defensive lines and they are effectively pinned down, unable to maneuver. While the Georgian military does have SA-11 Buk SAMs, the batteries have been positioned closer to Tbilisi in order to prevent unfettered Russian strikes on the capital itself. Near the front lines, the Georgians are relying on a couple units of SA-8 Osa’s and various MANPADS.
The Georgian Air Force consists of a handful of Su-25 Frogfoots and a few L-39’s along with some Mi-24 Hind attack helicopters. The Georgians also have a quantity of Mi-8 transport helicopters as well as surplus UH-1 Hueys from the U.S. With the successful Russian runway attack at Vaziani, the Georgian fixed wing aircraft have been grounded until repairs can be made. Regardless, they are no match for Russian 4th generation fighters, and the Georgians have been holding their fixed wing aircraft in reserve anyway. That said, a Georgian An-26 transport aircraft is scheduled to depart from Tbilisi to Kutaisi just prior to our launch time. Their flight plan should keep them well out of our assigned stations for this mission. Additionally, our SEALs are teaming up with Georgian Special Forces and will be deploying to a Combat Outpost near the front lines via Georgian Mi-8’s.
MISSION
VFA-41 will be conducting Defensive Counter Air this evening. The goal is to attrite some of the Russian VKS aircraft that have been operating with relative impunity the last few weeks and begin establishing air superiority over the AO. To that end, Dealer flights will start up at 1715 hours and should plan to be airborne by 1730 hours. Waypoint 1 has been set up to the east of Tbilisi for use as a marshaling point. The airspace around Tbilisi and the front lines is confined and we cannot risk inadvertently entering the airspace of Azerbaijan to the southeast and especially Armenia to the south. Once flights are established at Waypoint 1, they should push out at intervals to establish continuous coverage CAP stations between Waypoints 2 and 3 and Waypoints 4 and 5. A potential tactic is to break flights into sections to allow for some aircraft to always be pointed toward the threat corridor. Consider altitude deconfliction in the confined airspace to mitigate the threat of mid-air collisions.
Any Russian aircraft crossing the border into Georgia or South Ossetia may be engaged as required. The Russians have been operating Su-27 and Su-30 fighters as well as Su-25, Su-24 and Su-34 attack aircraft out of Mozdok air base, approximately 130nm north of Tbilisi. In addition, the Russians are operating an A-50 Mainstay AWACS aircraft out of Mozdok as well. Russian attack and transport helicopters are also operating out of FOBs near Tskhinvali (the self-proclaimed capital of South Ossetia) and Java, a few kilometers to the north.
To prevent ground based friendly fire, the Georgia air defenses will go weapons hold once Dealer flights are airborne. That means all airborne threats are our responsibility. Expect a vulnerability period of approximately 60 minutes once on station. Fuel, as always, is a major factor. While we won’t be covering large distances, there is no airborne tanker support in the theater currently. Mission commanders and flight leads should factor in the vulnerability time and effect of defensive and offensive maneuvers on fuel consumption in their loadout decision making. Flight leads are cleared to detach flight aircraft to RTB as needed for fuel considerations or weapons expenditure.
THREATS
In addition to the above mentioned airborne threats, expect short range SAMs dispersed throughout the area of operations. While no strategic or high level tactical SAMs have been observed in the area, the Russians are sure to have SA-13, SA-19, AAA and MANPADS dispersed with their armor and artillery units in the AO, however no specific locations have been pinpointed at this time. Use caution if engaging low flying aircraft or helicopters.
North of the Russian border, an extensive SA-11 Buk battalion covers the area from the border up to Mozdok. Crossing north of the border is not authorized by EUCOM at this time.
ROE
Weapons free on any Russian aircraft flying south of the Russian/Georgian border.
MISSION OVERVIEW
DATE: 16 October, 2022
TIME: 1715
SUNRISE: 0740
SUNSET: 1838
MOON: None
TASK: Defensive Counter Air
WX: 300@06kts / Scattered at 6,000 / Few 23,000 /T18 / Q30.12
FLIGHT DURATION: ~190nm plus loiter
AVAILABLE SQUADRON ASSETS:
Dealer 1: 4 x F/A-18c
Dealer 2: 4 x F/A-18c
Dealer 3: 4 x F/A-18c
CARRIER:
USS(CVN-) / BRC ° / Freq [] / TCN / ICLS:
SUPPORTING UNITS:
AWACS / E-3A / WIZARD/ Freq 266.000 [4]
Mission Tanker / / / Freq: []/ TCN:
Recovery Tanker / / / Freq [] / TCN:
DIVERT: Kutaisi
[WP N/A]
Rwy: 07/25
VOR:
ATC: 134.000 [18]
BULLSEYE: Gori [WP6]
Route Overview:
- Route Overview.png (3.96 MiB) Viewed 848 times
Tbilisi Taxi Route:
- X_Taxi Instructions.png (235.53 KiB) Viewed 848 times
Mission Data Card:
- Z_Mission Data Card M02.PNG (56.01 KiB) Viewed 848 times