mclean@gn.ecn.purdue.edu (Brent D McLean) (12/06/89)
From: mclean@gn.ecn.purdue.edu (Brent D McLean) :From: nelson_p@apollo.com : : A recent Raytheon ad in AW&ST for their Sparrow : radar-guided anti-aircraft missile touts it as : "combat proven". When was it successfully used : in combat? I seem to recall that Sparrows were : used in the most recent encounter with Libya but : that they missed and Sidewinders made the kills. : : Was there another incident or is that what they : are referring to? : : ---Peter Sparrows have been around since Vietnam, and it was there that they became "combat proven". As for effective, well that may be another question. They tended to have reliability problems and could be out-maneuvered relatively easily. None the less, they were good to have on board for breaking up flights of enemy aircraft. After all, only a fool will ignore a missile flying directly at him. Brent D. McLean mclean@gn.ecn.purdue.edu