{"id":38144,"date":"2018-05-11T20:37:01","date_gmt":"2018-05-11T20:37:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/05\/11\/iraqi-air-successes-can-mean-a-reduced-need-for-us-military-assets\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:09:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:09:33","slug":"iraqi-air-successes-can-mean-a-reduced-need-for-us-military-assets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/flashpoints\/2018\/05\/11\/iraqi-air-successes-can-mean-a-reduced-need-for-us-military-assets\/","title":{"rendered":"Iraqi air successes can mean a reduced need for US military assets"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Recent events, such as the end of major ground combat operations in Iraq and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/flashpoints\/2018\/02\/05\/us-coalition-form-new-advisory-team-to-better-train-assist-iraqi-air-force\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Iraqi Air Force <\/a>pilots coordinating <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/flashpoints\/2018\/01\/23\/us-airstrikes-decimate-nearly-150-isis-militants\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">attacks <\/a>outside of their borders, have shown an increase in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/flashpoints\/2018\/04\/15\/western-airstrikes-unlikely-to-impact-assads-war-machine\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">capabilities <\/a>that will allow U.S. forces to pull back in the region and likely focus resources elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ground mission in Iraq was transferred to Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve last week when officials announced the \u201cend of major combat operations\u201d in the fight against ISIS and deactivated the Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This week, British Maj. Gen. Felix Gedney, deputy commander of CJTF-OIR, posted on Twitter that Iraqi pilots continue to strike ISIS targets in Syria as part of Operation Roundup and will \u201cdestroy the last of their fake caliphate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2018\/05\/01\/change-in-iraq-mission-could-mean-some-10th-mountain-soldiers-come-home-early\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/CJFLCC-Piatt.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Change in Iraq mission could mean some 10th Mountain soldiers come home early<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">An end to major combat operations in Iraq has shifted the mission for soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These advancements by the Iraqis allow them to rely less on American airpower except in certain mission types or capabilities, such as air refueling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some of the Iraqi Air Force\u2019s newly expanded capabilities were on display April 19 when its pilots conducted an airstrike near Hajin, Syria, against ISIS fighters near the Iraq-Syria border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis operation highlights the capabilities of Iraq\u2019s armed forces to aggressively pursue Daesh and to maintain their country\u2019s internal security,\u201d said Brig. Gen. Robert Sofge, deputy commanding general of operations for CJTF-OIR, in a release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Military Times spoke recently with Air Force Col. James Howard, who is the commander of the 370th Air Expeditionary Advisory Group, which assists the Iraqi air mission in the fight against ISIS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Howard emphasized that the Iraqi Air Force has a nearly 90-year history and a legacy of fighting in the Iran-Iraq wars. But the addition of the F-16 fighter jet in 2015 has brought their capabilities into a fresh territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The post-2003 Iraqi Air Force that remained somewhat regionally focused has a national capability now, Howard said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And after sending pilots to train in the United States, the Iraqis are now developing pilots at home, after having reopened the air academy in February. The Iraqis now have an established squadron of fixed-wing pilots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Howard said over the past three to four years, there has been a growth in the number of pilots, as well as their capabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They\u2019re especially adept at using laser-guided bombs, such as the GBU-12, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThey\u2019ve honed those skills over the last few years,\u201d Howard said. \u201cThere\u2019s been solid integration with the coalition through advise-and-assist that has really enabled that type of capability and taken the fight across the border.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"801\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AIR-SRB-changes-2-web.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-65151\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AIR-SRB-changes-2-web.jpg.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AIR-SRB-changes-2-web.jpg.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AIR-SRB-changes-2-web.jpg.jpg?resize=768,513 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AIR-SRB-changes-2-web.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,684 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Tech. Sgt. Daryl Gladstein, a boom operator assigned to the 340th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron, refuels an F-16 Fighting Falcon over the skies of Afghanistan on Jan. 17. (Master Sgt. Phil Speck\/Air Force)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those missions remain somewhat simple by U.S. standards, however, and air refueling still requires coalition assistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition, Iraqi forward air controllers, similar to American joint terminal attack controllers, are being trained at a clip of 40 per class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So far, three classes have graduated, with another in progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Iraqi forward air controllers are limited to deconflicting air missions. They\u2019re not authorized to clear aircraft hot for fire missions, Howard said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some of the effects they can accomplish now are a result of work last year to retake Mosul from ISIS occupiers, Howard said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As they rebuild, Iraqi pilots still have operations on which to hone their skills. They are doing both border security, such as the recent strike in Syria, and internal missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And Howard sees a dramatic shift in capabilities since as recently as last fall. as the Iraqis have established a \u201cbroader footprint\u201d over the spring in western Anbar province.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Iraqi Air Force is a willing and perfectly able partner, capable of strikes internally and across the border,\u201d Howard said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Recent advances in capability by Iraqi military forces are allowing U.S. forces to pull back in the region and likely focus resources elsewhere.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":51943,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":8,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,8,23,89,12,26,65],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3405],"class_list":["post-38144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-flashpoints","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-navy"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"AER4GSENVNBCVFLMMAVT744AJE","arc_canonical_url":"\/flashpoints\/2018\/05\/11\/iraqi-air-successes-can-mean-a-reduced-need-for-us-military-assets\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Iraqi air successes can mean a reduced need for US military assets - Navy Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Recent advances in capability by Iraqi military forces are allowing U.S. forces to pull back in the region and likely focus resources elsewhere.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Iraqi air successes can mean a reduced need for US military assets\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Recent advances in capability by Iraqi military forces are allowing U.S. forces to pull back in the region and likely focus resources elsewhere.\" \/>\n<meta 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