low [would help], and they were right.
The MiG stayed up at about 8,000-9,000ft
and chased them for about 10 minutes
before breaking o and turning back.
At that time, the Iraqi pilot should have
seen scores of incoming aircraft that were
crossing into southern Iraq.’
Hardziej was on that rst mission of the
war, ying one of the three Ravens that
had the encounter with Iraqi ghters. He
added further detail on the nal stages
of the interception: ‘By the time the
distance had narrowed to 10 miles, close
enough for the MiG to get a clear shot,
we descended and engaged our TFR and
ran for the border as fast as we could.
We couldn’t light our ’burners for fear
it would give away our exact position.
The bandits consisted of one Mirage and
one MiG-29. AWACS con rmed that they
red three missiles at us and by jinking
and cha ng we eluded all three. The
Iraqi inability to ght at low level at night
and hold a target that had the defensive
means we did sure helped us.’
Incidentally, when the initial jamming
force approached the sanctuary of
Taif it couldn’t land because of dense
fog, so it diverted to the F-117 base at
Khamis Mushait.Rest of the war
The EF-111 crews continued to penetrate
wherever they were needed over Iraq or
Kuwait. Their missions were di cult for
the next seven to 10 days until F-15 Eagles
had gained complete air superiority. Even
then, the Ravens were targeted because
the enemy knew they were defenseless.
Some of the aircrews stated that it seemed
like every day they were chased and red
on by enemy ghters before the Iraqi Air
Force was silenced.
Each mission, from the planning until
the debrie ng, lasted anywhere from 12-
14 hours. This was due in part to the great
distance from Taif to the Iraqi border.
Aerial refueling was a factor in the timing,
the EF-111s usually being the last assets
to top up because they were able to
remain airborne for longer periods.
The 390th Ravens returned to
Mountain Home eight months after the
initial deployment to Saudi Arabia with
a job well done. They had own some of
the most hazardous missions of the war.
One was lost due to hostile action. On
February 13, 1991, EF-111 serial 66-0023
own by the 42nd ECS was shot down
by either ‘triple-A’ or a missile close to
the Saudi border. Both crew members
sadly died in the crash.As we approached the line, we could
see the Hellfi re missiles hitting their
designated targets. At that point, we knew
we were in a war
Right top to
bottom: Bearing
37 mission
markings, this
EF-111A is
returning from
another ‘Desert
Storm’ push.
USAF/TSgt
Fernando Serna
Lt Col Hardziej is
presented with a
solid gold dagger
from the Royal
Saudi Air Force
at a ceremony at
the end of ‘Desert
Storm’.
Dennis Hardziej
EF-111 crews from
the squadrons
pose for a photo
at the campaign’s
conclusion.
Dennis HardziejGLORY DAYS // EF-111 IN DESERT STORM
72 July 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net
66-72 EF-111 Desert Storm C.indd 72 22/05/2018 18:10