Operation Allied Force, 1999

Operation Allied Force Overview

• Operation Allied Force occurred in 1999
• The USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and USS Gonzalez (DDG-66) were part of the USS Theodore Roosevelt's battle group in support of Operation Allied Force
• On March 24, 1999, NATO launched Operation Allied Force against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
• The goal was to stop the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Kosovo, after diplomatic avenues had failed
• NATO suspended Operation Allied Force on June 10, 1999, after 78 days
• Suspension followed a Military Technical Agreement that included Yugoslavia's commitment to end violence and withdraw its forces

Aircraft and Munitions Used

• Naval aviation contributed land-based EA-6B Prowlers, EP-3E Aries IIs, and F/A-18D Hornets during the operation
• Allied aircraft used Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) operationally for the first time
• Other aircraft involved included five Anti-surface Warfare Improvement Program-modified P-3C Orions of VP-5
  • These were equipped with synthetic aperture radar and AGM-84E SLAM (Standoff Land Attack Missiles)
• RQ-1A Predator camera-carrying unmanned aerial vehicles were also used

Significance

• Vice Admiral James F. Amerault stated the operation highlights the importance of forward presence using combat-ready carrier and amphibious groups with embarked Marine Expeditionary Units
• The Roosevelt Battle Group commenced strike operations three days after entering the Mediterranean
• It began operations just ten days after the start of its scheduled deployment
• The Roosevelt Battle Group was noteworthy for destroying scores of fixed targets and damaging over 400 tactical targets
• The Battle Group flew over 3,000 sorties without losing a single aircraft

Additional Information

• U.S. Navy CH-53E Super Stallions from Minesweep Helicopter Squadron 15 on the USS Inchon (MCS-12) transported passengers to Camp Hope in Fier, Albania
• Camp Hope was built by the U.S. to house ethnic Albanians displaced from Kosovo
• Admiral T. Joseph Lopez, of Allied Forces Southern Europe, was briefed on a fatal gunshot incident involving a Ukrainian IFOR tank crew member in Bosnia on September 8, 1996