During the recent Gulf War, America and its allies executed one of the shortest and most successful air campaigns in history. From the comfort of their homes, Americans watched as fighters flew attack missions into the heart of Iraq. They witnessed the devastation of bridges, command posts, and other vital military targets within the city limits of Baghdad. These attacks were continuous, occurring throughout the day and night. In 1965, American air commanders had expected such a display of air power during the Rolling Thunder air campaign against North Vietnam (NVN). For over a year, US fighters could not bomb...

Direct United States Air Force involvement in Vietnam first occurred in 1954 with airlift operations aiding the French at Dien Bien Phu. After French defeat and the partition of the country, the United States pledged increased support to South Vietnam (SVN). By late 1963, the deterioration of the South Vietnamese government led to the deployment of 17,000 US military advisors to SVN. These advisors could provide support to the South Vietnamese armed forces, but were not allowed to conduct combat missions. The United States maintained this "official" position until December 1963, although American aircrews flew covert strike missions disguised as...

Ironically, ROEs minimized destruction to North Vietnam’s most important targets, and perhaps their most damaging impact was on the military commanders and the aircrews flying the actual combat missions over North Vietnam. They were forced to fly and fight in a manner contrary to expectations, training, and published doctrine. The self-imposed and restrictive rules prevented the United States from ever employing the maximum conventional strength of its superior air power during Rolling Thunder. Military chiefs equated this "holding back of power" to what aircrews later labeled as "fighting with one hand tied behind their backs." This method of fighting challenged...

The controversial nature of Rolling Thunder and its seeming lack of impact on North Vietnam resulted in many studies that analyzed the campaign's effectiveness. When Rolling Thunder began in 1965, North Vietnam had practically no AAA guns or SAMs, and very few fighter aircraft. Its main transportation links consisted of two main railroads, one major port at Haiphong, and two smaller ports; the military felt confident that knocking out each of these targets would greatly complicate support and aid to the North Vietnamese from foreign sources.¹ Many military leaders believed the shift in focus to these vital targets above the...

The restrictive nature of the ROEs actually aided the enemy in his fight against American air strikes over North Vietnam. The North Vietnamese used the rules as a weapon against America to cushion themselves and their homeland against the bombing. Decision-makers at the White House initially ignored the advantages that the ROEs gave the enemy because they believed the war would be short-lived. The future threat of US air power inflicting untold damage on North Vietnam was believed enough to break the enemy's will to fight and force him to the peace table. The exact amount of air power needed...

In wars, military strategy does not always mirror published doctrine. Winning nations have often been those more willing to close the gap between doctrine and strategy as much as possible. In Vietnam during the Rolling Thunder campaign, strategy and doctrine were mismatched, and not enough was done by American decision-makers to allow air commanders to meld the two. Throughout Rolling Thunder, military leaders screamed for changes to the operational conduct of the air war. President Johnson and his civilian advisors, through the ROEs, maintained tight control of the air war and substantially degraded air power's effectiveness. They did not intend...