Gulf of Sidra incident (1981)
1981 air battle between Libya and the US in the Mediterranean / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This article is about the 1981 incident involving Su-22s. For the 1989 incident involving MiG-23s, see Gulf of Sidra incident (1989). For other military actions in the area, see Battle of Sirte.
In the first Gulf of Sidra incident, 19 August 1981, two Libyan Su-22 Fitters fired upon two U.S. F-14 Tomcats and were subsequently shot down off the Libyan coast. Libya had claimed that the entire Gulf was their territory, at 32° 30′ N, with an exclusive 62-nautical-mile (115 km; 71 mi) fishing zone, which Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi asserted as "The Line of Death" in 1973.[1] Two further incidents occurred in the area in 1986 and in 1989.
Quick Facts Date, Location ...
Gulf of Sidra incident (1981) | |||||||
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Part of the Cold War | |||||||
A CGI recreation of Fast Eagle 107's AIM-9 Sidewinder about to hit a Libyan Su-22 over Gulf of Sidra. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
United States | Libya | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Ronald Reagan | Muammar Gaddafi | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
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Casualties and losses | |||||||
None | 2 aircraft destroyed |
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