Wikipedia

Airlift

Not to be confused withAerial lift.
For other uses, seeAirlift (disambiguation).

Anairliftis the organized delivery ofsuppliesorpersonnelprimarily viamilitary transport aircraft.

People boarding aLockheed C-5 Galaxy,a large military cargo aircraft

Airlifting consists of two distinct types: strategic and tactical. Typically, strategic airlifting involves moving material long distances (such as across or off the continent or theater), whereas a tactical airlift focuses on deploying resources and material into a specific location with high precision.

Depending on the situation, airlifted supplies can be delivered by a variety of means. When the destination and surroundingairspaceis considered secure, the aircraft will land at an appropriateairportorairbaseto have its cargo unloaded on the ground. When landing the craft or distributing the supplies to a certain area from alanding zoneby surface transportation is not an option, the cargo aircraft can drop them in mid-flight usingparachutesattached to the supply containers in question. When there is a broad area available where the intended receivers have control without fear of the enemy interfering with the collection and/or stealing the goods, the planes can maintain a normal flightaltitudeand simplyairdropthe supplies down and let them parachute to the ground. However, when the area is too small for this method, as with an isolated base, and/or is too dangerous to land in, aLow-altitude parachute-extraction systemdrop is used.

During disasters and other crises, airlifts are used to support or replace other transport methods to relieve beleagueredcivilianpopulations. Examples include theBerlin Airlift,to supply isolatedWest Berlinwith food and coal, the1990 Air India airliftto rescue Indian citizens caught up in theGulf War,and the 1967–70Biafran airliftduring theNigerian Civil War.

History

edit
TheDouglas C-47 Skytrainwas used extensively during theBerlin airlift.

In November 1915 theFrench squadronMF 99 S,equipped withFarman MF.11,flew wounded soldiers fromSerbiathroughAlbaniatoCorfu.This was the firstmedevacoperation in air history.[1][2]

In April 1923 aircraft of theBritishRoyal Air Force'sIraq Commandflew 280Sikhtroops fromKingarbantoKirkukin the first British air trooping operation. This operation was only conducted over a short-range and it was not until 1929 that the RAF conducted a long-range non-combat air evacuation ofBritish Embassystaff fromAfghanistantoIndiausing aVickers Victoriaduring theKabul airlift.

The world'sfirst long-range combat airlifttook place from July to October 1936.[3]Nazi GermanLuftwaffeJu 52andFascist ItalianRegia AeronauticaSavoia-Marchetti SM.81were used by theSpanish Nationalist Air Forceto transportArmy of Africatroops fromSpanish Moroccoto theSpanish mainlandat thebeginningof theSpanish Civil War.

Airlifts became practical duringWorld War IIas aircraft became large and sophisticated enough to handle large cargo demands. The Germans used an airlift in successful relief of theDemyansk Pocket,albeit with the Luftwaffe suffering considerable losses to its fleet of transport planes. Due to the apparent vindication of the airlift tactic, Chief of theOberkommando der LuftwaffeHermann GöringassuredAdolf Hitlerthat the Luftwaffe could conduct an airlift on a larger scale, which was the key factor not to let theSixth Armywithdraw fromStalingradafter itsencirclementby theRed Army.However the Luftwaffe was strained at this point while facing better prepared Soviet air forces at Stalingrad, so they were unable to delivery the necessary supplies before the airfields were overrun. In spite of the airlift's obvious shortcomings, Hitler refused permission for the Sixth Army to attempt a breakout, eventually leading its commanderFriedrich Paulusto surrender.[4]

TheU.S. Army Air Force'sAir Transport Commandbegan the largest and longest-sustained airlift of the war in May 1942, delivering more than half a million net tons of materiel from India toFree Chinaoverthe Humpby November 1945. After many USAAF airmen were shot down inNazi-occupied SerbiaduringOperation Tidal Wave,theU.S. Fifteenth Air Forceand theOffice of Strategic Servicesevacuated a number of them inOperation Halyardwith the assistance ofDraža Mihailović'sChetnikpartisans.[5]Additionally, at the end of World War II the USAAF and the RAF arranged humanitarianairdropsto theNazi-occupied NetherlandsthroughOperations Manna and Chowhoundto alleviate theDutch famine of 1944-45.[6]

The largest airlift was theBerlin airlift,lasting from June 1948 to September 1949, an international operation intended to thwart the blockading ofWest Berlinby theSoviet Union.The airlift was arranged by theU.S. Air Force,the British Royal Air Force, theFrench Air Force,theRoyal Canadian Air Force,theRoyal Australian Air Force,theRoyal New Zealand Air Force,and theSouth African Air ForceusingC-47 Skytrains,C-54 Skymasters,Handley Page Haltons,andShort Sunderlands.[7]Many Soviet and Western leaders alike initially assumed that an airlift to resupply West Berlin would fail because of the results of the Battle of Stalingrad. However, it instead succeeded and became an embarrassment for the Soviet Union, which ended the blockade.[8][9]The blockade and the success of the airlift would be a major factor in thebeginning of the Cold Warand the formation of theNorth Atlantic Treaty Organization,theWestern European Union,and theFederal Republic of Germany.[10][11]

TheIsraeli Air ForceandEl Alconducted a number of airlifts during theJewish exodus from Arab and Muslim countriestoIsraelafter the1948 Arab–Israeli War.In 1949 Israel evacuated 49,000Yemenite JewstoIsraelviaOperation On Wings of Eagles.[12]In 1951 it carried outOperation Ezra and Nehemiahevacuating over 120,000JewsfromIraqto Israel viaBritish Cyprus.[13]TheIsrael Defense Forceslater evacuated over 8,000Beta Israelrefugees fromEthiopialiving inrefugee campsinSudanthroughOperation Moses,Operation Joshua,andOperation Solomonduring theEthiopian famineandcivil war.[14][15][16]

During theFirst Indochina War,the French expeditionary forces devised thehérisson('hedgehog') concept, establishing a fortifiedairheadby airlifting soldiers to positions adjacent to key Viet Minh supply lines to Laos. This would cut offViet Minhsoldiers fighting in Laos and force them to withdraw. "It was an attempt to interdict the enemy's rear area, to stop the flow of supplies and reinforcements, to establish a redoubt in the enemy's rear and disrupt his lines". It was executed successfully at theBattle of Nà Sản,so the French hoped to repeat it on a larger scale at theBattle of Điện Biên Phủ.[17]However, based on the lessons learned from Nà Sản, the Viet Minh improved their preparations at Điện Biên Phủ including concealed artillery and massed anti-aircraft batteries, making it dangerous for the French aircraft to use the runways, afterwards a bombardment forced the French to abandon use of the airstrip altogether and rely upon parachute drops. The besieged French forces eventually surrendered.[18]

The largest civilian airlift ever, theBiafran airlift,was carried out byProtestantandCatholicchurches working together under the banner "Joint Church Aid" (JCA) to carry food toBiafra,during theBiafran secession warfromNigeriain 1967–70. This joint effort (which those involved used to call "Jesus Christ Airlines" as an inside joke from the initials JCA) is estimated to have saved more than a million lives in Biafra. Most airplanes departed fromPortuguese São Tomé and Príncipeto the bush landing strip ofUli,the only operational "airport" in Biafra, which was made by enlarging a common road. Flights were made flying at night with all lights off and under near-totalradio silenceto avoidNigerian Air ForceMiG aircraft.All the airplanes, crews, and logistics were paid, set up, and maintained by the joint church groups. JCA and their crews and aircraft (mostly aging multi prop airliners likeDC-7's,Lockheed ConstellationandSuperconstellations,DC-6's, andDC3's) kept flying into Biafra at the cost of many crews lives.[19][verification needed]

During the 1973Yom Kippur War,theU.S. Air ForceMilitary Airlift CommandconductedOperation Nickel Grassto resupply Israel in the face of a coordinated surprise attack byEgyptandSyria.[20]The airlift allowed Israel to begin a counteroffensive against the Arab states but caused theOrganization of Petroleum Exporting Countriesto place anoil embargoon the United States, beginning the1970s energy crisis.[21]

During the 1974Turkish invasion of CyprustheHellenic Air Forceattempted to airlift commandos toNicosia AirportthroughOperation Nikibut failed after theNord Noratlasplanes were shot down byfriendly firefrom theCypriot National Guardafter flying overRAF Akrotiri.[22][23]

The largest civilian airlift in history was conducted byAir Indiaduring theGulf War,which repatriated 176,000 Indianmigrant workersstranded inBa'athist Iraqafter theinvasion of Kuwait.[24][25]Indiahas conducted other airlifts of migrant workers during Middle Eastern crises. TheIndian Navyevacuated numerous Indian civilians from the2006 Lebanon WarviaOperation Sukoon,from theFirst Libyan Civil WarviaOperation Safe Homecoming,from theSouth Sudanese Civil WarviaOperation Sankat Mochan,and from theSaudi-Yemen WarinOperation Raahat.[26][27][28]ThePakistan Navyalsoevacuated Pakistani nationals from Yemen via an airliftduring the Saudi intervention.[29]The Indian Armed Forces also conducted an airlift to Nepal after the2015 Nepal earthquakethroughOperation Maitri.[30]

During theoutbreakof theCOVID-19 pandemicinWuhan,numerous air forces and civilian airlines arrangedevacuation flightsfromWuhan Tianhe International Airport.[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38]

The highest rate of civilian airlift in history (number of civilians evacuated per day) was during fall of Kabul in August 2021, where 778 flights evacuated 124,334 people over 17 days - 7,300 civilians per day (compared to 2,700 per day airlift of Indians from Kuwait in 1990).[39]The evacuation peaked on August 23, 2021, where over 21,600 civilians were evacuated in a single day. During thefall of Kabulat the end of theWar in Afghanistanafter theTalibancaptured most ofAfghanistanin a2021 offensivefollowing thewithdrawal of US and NATO forces,foreign governments evacuatedhundreds of thousands of their citizens as well as at-risk Afghans fromHamid Karzai International Airport.[40][41][42]As part of theU.S. Armed Forces'Operation Allies Refuge,U.S. Secretary of DefenseLloyd Austinrequisitioned U.S. airliners through theCivil Reserve Air Fleetto assist theU.S. Transportation Command.[43]TheU.S. Department of Defenselater claimed to have evacuated 122,000 people, includingU.S. citizensand AfghanSpecial Immigrant Visaapplicants.[44]Other airlifts included theBritish Armed Forces'Operation Pitting,theCanadian Armed Forces'Operation AEGIS,and theIndian Armed Forces'Operation Devi Shakti.

Strategic airlift

edit

Strategic airlift is the use ofmilitary transport aircraftto transportvehicles,materiel,weaponry,orpersonnelover long distances. Typically, this involves airlifting the required items between two airbases that are not in the same vicinity. This allowscommandersto bring items into a combat theater from a point on the other side of the planet, if necessary. Aircraft which perform this role are consideredstrategic airlifters.This contrasts with tactical airlifters, such as theC-130 HerculesandTransall C-160,which can normally only move supplies within a giventheater of operations.

TheAirbus A400M Atlasperforms tactical as well as strategic airlift.

Examples of late current large strategic airlifters include:

However it is prohibitively expensive and impractical to shift a substantial mechanised force such asmain battle tanksby air. For instance theM1 Abramscould only be carried by aC-5 Galaxy(two tanks) or aC-17 Globemaster III(one tank). This difficulty has prompted investment in lighter armoured fighting vehicles (such as theStryker), as well as some preliminary research into alternative airlift technologies such asground effect vehiclesandairships.Civilian aircraft are also commonly used for transportation. For some civilian airlines, such asVolga-Dnepr Airlines,military contracts account for a large portion of their income.

Tactical airlift

edit

Tactical airlift is amilitaryterm for the airborne transportation of supplies and equipment within atheatre of operations(in contrast to strategic airlift). Aircraft that perform this role are referred to astactical airlifters.These are typicallyturbopropaircraft and feature short landing and take-off distances and low-pressure tires allowing operations from small or poorly prepared airstrips. While they lack the speed and range of strategic airlifters (which are typicallyjet-powered), these capabilities are invaluable within war zones. Largermilitary transport helicopters,such as theCH-47 ChinookandMil Mi-26,can also be used to airlift personnel and equipment. Helicopters have the advantage that they do not require a landing strip and that equipment can often be suspended below the aircraft allowing it to be delivered without landing but are fuel inefficient and thus typically have limited range. Hybrid aircraft such as theBell Boeing V-22 Ospreyalso exist which attempt to combineVTOLflight with greater range and speed.

Tactical airlift aircraft are designed to be maneuverable, allowing the low-altitude flight to avoid detection by radar and for theairdroppingof supplies. Most are fitted withdefensive aids systemsto protect them from attack bysurface-to-air missiles.

The earliest Soviet tactical airlift occurred in 1929, in which forty men of theRed Armywere airlifted to the town ofGarm,Tajikistan(then theTajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic) to repel an attacking force ofBasmachirebels underFuzail Maksum.[46]

Examples of late current large tactical airlifters include:

Airlifter comparison

edit

Recent platforms

edit
Aircraft[47][48][49][50] Role Max. payload (Kg) Range (NM) Cruise(Mach) Ceiling(Ft.) Price
Antonov An-72[51] Tactical 10,000 1,728 NM Mach.68 36,089 Ft $12.5m (est.)
C-130J Super Hercules[52] Tactical 19,050 2,380 NM Mach.58 33,000 Ft $ 52m (est.)
Antonov An-12 Tactical 20,000 1,940 NM Mach.55 33,000 Ft —
Shaanxi Y-8 Tactical 20,000 3,030 NM Mach.45 34,000 Ft —
Embraer KC-390 Tactical 26,000 3,140 NM Mach.70 36,000 Ft $ 50m (est.)
Shaanxi Y-9 Tactical 25,000 3,700 NM Mach.53 34,120 Ft —
Airbus A400M Atlas Strategic/tactical 37,000 2,450 NM Mach.72 37,000 Ft € 100m (est.)
Airbus C295 Tactical 9,250 2,100 NM Mach.35 30,000 Ft -
Kawasaki C-2 Strategic/tactical 37,600 3,000 NM Mach.80 40,000 Ft $ 120m (est.)
Antonov An-70 Tactical 47,000 1,621 NM Mach.73 40,000 Ft $ 80m (est.)
Ilyushin Il-76 Strategic/tactical 60,000 2,700 NM Mach.70 42,700 Ft $ 120m (est.)
Xian Y-20 Strategic 66,000 2,430 NM Mach.75 42,700 Ft —
C-17 Globemaster III Strategic/tactical 77,520 2,380 NM Mach.77 45,000 Ft $ 225m
C-5 Galaxy Strategic 122,472 2,400 NM Mach.77 34,000 Ft $ 168m
Antonov An-124 Strategic 150,000 2,808 NM Mach.65 35,000 Ft $70–100m
Antonov An-225 Strategic 250,000 2,159 NM Mach.61 33,000 Ft —

See also

edit

References and notes

edit
  1. ^Albin, Denis."Escadrille 525".L'histoire de l'aviation militaire française(in French).Retrieved15 August2017.
  2. ^"Veliki rat – Avijacija".Radio Television of Serbia(in Serbian). 8 February 2014.Retrieved15 August2017.
  3. ^Per photograph caption pg.146 and also text pg.201,Air Power,Budiansky, Stephen, Penguin Group, London England 2005
  4. ^Beevor, Antony (1999).Stalingrad.London: Penguin.ISBN0-14-024985-0.OCLC40646157.
  5. ^"The greatest rescue you've never heard of".Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  6. ^"Operation Manna-Chowhound: Deliverance from Above".The National WWII Museum | New Orleans.6 May 2020.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  7. ^Turner, Barry (2017).The Berlin airlift: the relief operation that defined the Cold War.ISBN978-1-5100-8956-3.OCLC1018254052.
  8. ^Schrader, Helena (2010).The blockade breakers: the Berlin Airlift.Stroud: History.ISBN978-0-7524-5600-3.OCLC495598280.
  9. ^Taylor, Fred (2006).The Berlin Wall: a world divided, 1961-1989(1st U.S. ed.). New York:HarperCollins.ISBN978-0-06-078613-7.OCLC76481596.
  10. ^Archives, The National."Berlin Blockade and formation of NATO".nationalarchives.gov.uk.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  11. ^"The Berlin Blockade".NATO.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  12. ^"On wings of eagles: Operation to bring Yemenite Jews to Israel".The Jerusalem Post | JPost.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  13. ^"Operation Ezra & Nehemia - The Airlift of Iraqi Jews".jewishvirtuallibrary.org.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  14. ^"Operation Moses".historyofwar.org.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  15. ^"1984-1991 Airlift of Ethiopian Jewish community |".2017-05-10. Archived fromthe originalon 2017-05-10.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  16. ^"Operation Solomon".jewishvirtuallibrary.org.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  17. ^Kennedy, Bruce."1954 battle changed Vietnam's history".CNN.Archived fromthe originalon 19 December 2008.
  18. ^Simpson, Howard R. (May 1994).Dien Bien Phu: the epic battle America forgot.Brassey's (US).ISBN0-02-881047-3.
  19. ^Shadows: airlift and airwar in Biafra and Nigeria 1967–1970, by Michael I. Draper (ISBN1-902109-63-5)
  20. ^"Nickel Grass".2012-03-31. Archived fromthe originalon 2012-03-31.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  21. ^Wambold, Adam (2014-10-08)."Operation Nickel Grass: Turning Point of the Yom Kippur War »".Retrieved2021-09-05.
  22. ^"Military Histories - July 21st to 22nd 1974".militaryhistories.co.uk.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  23. ^Nicosia, Associated Press in (2015-08-06)."Cypriot officials say they may have found Greek aircraft shot down in 1974".the Guardian.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  24. ^Fabian, K.P.; Journal, Indian Foreign Affairs (2012)."Biggest Ever Air Evacuation in History".Indian Foreign Affairs Journal.7(1): 93–107.ISSN0973-3248.JSTOR45341807.
  25. ^Venkataramakrishnan, Rohan (2 July 2014)."The Berlin airlift was remarkable, but the largest civilian evacuation in history is by India".Scroll.in.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  26. ^"Khaleej Times Online - Return of evacuees brings joy to families".2007-09-30. Archived fromthe originalon 2007-09-30.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  27. ^"India unveils Operation Safe Homecoming, thousands on way".Sify.2011-03-02. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-03-02.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  28. ^"India evacuates 4,640 nationals, 960 others from Yemen".oneindia.2015-04-09.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  29. ^Haider, Irfan (2015-03-27)."Nawaz orders evacuation of Pakistanis stranded in Yemen".dawn.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  30. ^"Nepal quake: India launches 'Operation Maitri', airlifts 546 from Kathmandu".2015-04-26. Archived fromthe originalon 2015-04-26.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  31. ^"Coronavirus: Second plane carrying 323 Indians from Wuhan to reach Delhi today".India Today.February 1, 2020.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  32. ^Jiang, Steven; Stracqualursi, Veronica (25 January 2020)."US chartering flight to evacuate American diplomats and citizens out of China amid coronavirus outbreak".CNN.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  33. ^Goldstein, Michael."US State Department Brings Home Over 85,000 Americans In Coronavirus Crisis".Forbes.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  34. ^Chaudhury, Dipanjan Roy."Coronavirus: India brings back 36 foreigners and 76 nationals from Wuhan".The Economic Times.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  35. ^"Эвакуация украинцев из Уханя: куда прилетит самолет, как обустроят карантин и кто протестует?".gordonua.19 February 2020.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  36. ^"Finns arrive in France after repatriation from Wuhan".Yle Uutiset.21 February 2020.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  37. ^"Canadian government worker, flight crew released from coronavirus quarantine - National | Globalnews.ca".2020-02-10. Archived fromthe originalon 2020-02-10.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  38. ^"Coronavirus evacuation flight from Wuhan lands in Darwin - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)".ABC News.2020-02-09. Archived fromthe originalon 2020-02-09.Retrieved2021-09-05.
  39. ^"Air Force colonel recalls the last flights out of Kabul in one of the largest evacuations in history".Fox News.2 September 2022.
  40. ^Chughtai, Alia."Infographic: Tracking the flights out of Kabul".aljazeera.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  41. ^Saric, Ivana (26 August 2021)."U.S. allies scramble to leave Afghanistan".Axios.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  42. ^"US troops to stay until Americans and eligible Afghans evacuated, says Biden".the Guardian.2021-08-16.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  43. ^Kaufman, Ellie; Liebermann, Oren; Stracqualursi, Veronica; Benveniste, Alexis (22 August 2021)."Pentagon activates US airlines to assist with evacuation efforts from Afghanistan".CNN.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  44. ^Gaouette, Nicole; Hansler, Jennifer; Starr, Barbara; Liebermann, Oren (30 August 2021)."The last US military planes have left Afghanistan, marking the end of the United States' longest war".CNN.Retrieved2021-09-04.
  45. ^"Ukraine detains officials over destruction of famous plane at start of war".Reuters.10 March 2023.
  46. ^Tucker, Spencer, 2013.Encyclopedia of Insurgency and Counterinsurgency: A New Era of Modern Warfare: A New Era of Modern Warfare.Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO.https:// abc-clio /ABC-CLIOCorporate/product.aspx?pc=A3973C
  47. ^Comparison of military transport aircraft
  48. ^"Caro capacity of military transport aircraft".Archived fromthe originalon 2018-08-11.Retrieved2021-07-08.
  49. ^ Lockheed C-5 dataArchivedMay 16, 2017, at theWayback Machine
  50. ^"Shaanxi Y-9 (Yun-9)".
  51. ^"An-72 COALER (ANTONOV)".
  52. ^Pike, John."C-130J Specifications and Performance".globalsecurity.org.
edit
Wikimedia Commons has media related toAirlift.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Airlift&oldid=1256785324"