[trevorishere]

> flares

Which do nothing for radar-guided SAMs... but pumping out chaff wouldn't be very visually impressive (if you could see it at all).

And of course, the strike package would have been accompanied by the EA-18G Growler to jam SAM radar.

[giantrobot]

> And of course, the strike package would have been accompanied by the EA-18G Growler to jam SAM radar.

Well it should have been preceded by a Wild Weasel mission to take out the SAM radars and launchers. The Growler mission would just be extra SAM defense. There also should have been a counter-air element to deal with the enemy fighters flying CAP.

There was enough intelligence available for the mission every fixed SAM site should have eaten a couple Tomahawks in addition to the airfield. It's also a mystery why the whole facility wasn't just leveled by some B-2s loaded with GBU-37s.

There would have been fewer dog fights but that probably would have been ok.

[trevorishere]

Good point about the B-2. Does the Navy even perform Wild Weasel? That's usually the F-16's job and we can only "assume" that it was out of range of any USAF or collation airbase.

Of course, the country in question would have to be Iran due to the F-14... though the Felon hasn't been shipped outside (or inside of...heh) Russia.

And of course we come back to 'it's a movie' :-)

[giantrobot]

I don't think the Navy calls their SEAD Wild Weasel. Their SEAD missions are similar to the Air Force's Wild Weasel missions but without the naming. They're both SEAD and use similar tactics and weapons.

But the movie's mission not including any SEAD was 100% suspenders of disbelief. The whole mission seemed to be planned by people that were the pilots' life insurance beneficiaries.