During my time as an EA-6B
Electronic Countermeasures Officer, I deployed to Incirlik Air Base in Adana
Turkey, in support of Operation Northern Watch – the UN No Fly Zone
enforcement operation over Northern Iraq. In addition to us, and the rest
of the normal USAF contingent of fighters and tankers, the RAF had deployed a
detachment of GR3 Jaguars to provide photo reconnaissance support. The Air
Force didn’t really know what to do with the Navy and RAF “black sheep”
since we followed our own regs, required a “probe and drogue” tanker, and
were generally a nuisance at the club on Friday nights. Thus, over many
gin and tonics, a friendship was formed, and the EA-6B detachment provided
electronic warfare support to the “Jags” during their many high-risk photo
runs over Iraqi air defense sites.
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The “Jags” were typically
unarmed, with the exception of those unique “over the wing” Sidewinders that
they sometimes carried. A typical loadout consisted of two drop tanks, a
Vinten photo-recce pod, an AN/ALQ-101 jammer, and a Phimat chaff dispenser. I
wanted to re-create one of the Jaguars that flew with us in the early 2000’s,
so I obtained Italeri’s 1/72 kit and some excellent aftermarket external
stores from Air Graphics Models in the UK. I also replaced the kit
Sidewinders with Eduard’s resin set. I used decals from Model Alliance to
create a 54 Sqn GR3 similar to the one seen below (credit – Wikimedia Commons,
public domain)