A new Balkan crisis erupted in Kosovo in the late 1990s that saw the Tornado GR1 thrown into battle again – and for the first time in Europe. The then wing commander at RAF Brüggen, Air Marshal (Ret’d) Greg Bagwell CB, CBE, discusses the Tornado’s campaign with Thomas Newdick
Tornado Tribute
The first RAF Tornados to see action over the war-torn Balkans were the F3 interceptors that helped police a UN no-fly zone over Bosnia from April 1993. For almost three years, Tornado F3 squadrons rotated to Gioia del Colle air base in southern Italy for three-month periods under Operation Deny Flight. While the F3s came close to using their weapons in anger, it was the Tornado GR1 Force that went into combat over the former Yugoslavia.
The province of Kosovo became the next Balkan flashpoint. Located in southern Serbia, Kosovo’s mixed population is majority ethnic Albanian. While it had enjoyed considerable autonomy within the former Yugoslavia, Serbian leader Slobodan Miloševic´ removed its powers and brought it under the direct control of Belgrade. In 1998, a state of open conflict existed between Kosovar Albanian forces and the Serbian government forces.
As the situation took a turn for the worse in October 19…
