A-10s over Kosovo (illustrations removed)

Country	Mission	Aircraft Type
Belgium	Attack[a]	F-16A
Canada	Attack	CF-18
France	Attack	Super Etendard, Jaguar
Germany	SEAD[b]	Tornado ECR
Italy	Attack	Tornado GR.1 IDS, AMX
Netherlands	Attack	F-16AM
	DCA[c]	F-16AM
Spain	Attack	EF-18
Turkey	Attack	TF-16
United Kingdom	Attack	GR-7 Harrier
	Support[d]	E-3D NAEW
United States	AFAC[e]	A-10, F-16CG, F-14
	Attack	A-10, F-16CG, F-15E, F-14, F/A-18, AV-8, B-1, B-52
	SAR[f]	A-10, MH-53J (Pave Low), MH-60 (Pave Hawk)
	SEAD	F-16CJ, EA-6B
	DCA	F-15A, F-15C, F-16CG, F-15E
	Support	E-3 AWACS, E-8 JSTARS, EC-130 ABCCC, EC-130H Compass Call, E-2C Hawkeye, KC-10, KC-135
	Recce[g]	Predator, Laser Predator, and Hunter

Country

Mission: Aircraft Type

====================

Belgium

Attack^[a]: F-16A

Canada

Attack: CF-18

France

Attack: Super Etendard, Jaguar

Germany

SEAD^[b]: Tornado ECR

Italy

Attack: Tornado GR.1 IDS, AMX

Netherlands

• Attack: F-16AM

• DCA^[c]: F-16AM

Spain

Attack: EF-18

Turkey

Attack: TF-16

United Kingdom

• Attack: GR-7 Harrier

• Support^[d]: E-3D NAEW

United States

• AFAC^[e]: A-10, F-16CG, F-14

• Attack: A-10, F-16CG, F-15E, F-14, F/A-18, AV-8, B-1, B-52

• SAR^[f]: A-10, MH-53J (Pave Low), MH-60 (Pave Hawk)

• SEAD: F-16CJ, EA-6B

• DCA: F-15A, F-15C, F-16CG, F-15E

• Support: E-3 AWACS, E-8 JSTARS, EC-130 ABCCC, EC-130H Compass Call, E-2C Hawkeye, KC-10, KC-135

• Recce^[g]: Predator, Laser Predator, and Hunter

[a] attack aircraft that employed weapons under the control of an AFAC.

[b] suppression of enemy air defenses.

[c] defensive counterair.

[d] specialized aircraft that support operations in areas of command, control, communications, reconnaissance, intelligence, refueling, and electronic warfare.

[e] airborne forward air controller.

[f] search and rescue.

[g] reconnaissance using unmanned aerial vehicles.

Keeping these mixed gaggles going the same way on the same day required three levels of planning and coordination. First, CAOC planners would build the packages from the available units to ensure the requisite capability. These packages would be published in the daily air tasking order (ATO) and, more importantly, in the draft ATO. The information in the draft allowed the units to get a head start on planning for the next day’s 0600 vul period.

Aviators representing each of the tasked units accomplished the second level of planning in the Wingtip, the wing’s mission planning cell at Aviano. They turned the ATO KEZ package information into two-page “coordination cards” to be used in the next day’s missions. The cards listed frequencies, code words, types of aircraft, and their ordnance. We always had an A-10 pilot there to put the cards together and send them to us at Gioia del Colle. Maj Peter R. “Bro” Brotherton, one of our guys doing his time at Aviano, was the first to appropriately indicate “lots” under the A-10’s ordnance column.

The third level of planning and coordination took place in the units. There, a group of young pilots, under the guidance of a field-grade supervisor, would produce the two-page lineup cards with tasking and tanker information, navigation way points, and weapons parameters. If units wanted to change something on the coordination card or alter their contribution to the KEZ packages, they simply communicated the details to their reps at the Wingtip and the CAOC. This vertical coordination for KEZ operations, after some initial hiccups, ran quite smoothly.