Libyan air force neutered

A Military Operations news article
24 Mar 11

The RAF's commander of the air operations over Libya, Air Vice Marshal Greg Bagwell, has reported that the Libyan air force "no longer exists as a fighting force."

Speaking from Gioia del Colle air base, near Bari in southern Italy, earlier this afternoon, AVM Bagwell said that the Libyan air force had been neutered by the coalition action:

"We are now applying sustained, unrelenting pressure on the Libyan armed forces. Their air force no longer exists as a fighting force, and its integrated air defence system and command and control networks are severely degraded to the point that we can operate over [Libyan] airspace with impunity," he said.

"As we continue to enforce the no-fly zone, we are watching over the innocent people of Libya and ensuring that we protect them from attack.

"We have the Libyan ground forces under constant observation, and we attack them whenever they threaten or attack civilians or population centres."

Source