U.S. F-16s Launch First Attack From Turkey Against Islamic State

[Purveyor]

August 12, 2015 — 6:38 PM EDT

U.S. F-16 fighter jets hit Islamic State targets in northern Syria in their first airstrikes from Turkey’s Incirlik air base since winning approval to use it last month, according to Pentagon officials.

Six of the jets made by Lockheed Martin Corp. took part in the strikes that are part of a “deeper U.S.-Turkey counter-ISIL cooperation,” Navy Commander Elissa Smith, a Pentagon spokeswoman, said in an e-mailed statement, using an acronym for Islamic State forces.

The U.S. began drone flights from Incirlik last week after Turkey agreed in July to a long-standing American request to use the base for closer airstrikes.

The shift follows months of wrangling between the two NATO allies over the strategy for dealing with Islamic State. Turkey says it wants to create a “safe zone” in northern Syria, a move the U.S. has stopped short of endorsing even as it’s pushed for greater Turkish cooperation.

“Turkey and the U.S. are joining forces against a common threat,” Coskun Unal, a military analyst for Sidar Global Advisors, a research firm in Washington, said by phone.“The use of Incirlik will lead to better intelligence-sharing between the allies, which could increase number of precision strikes on Islamic State.”

more...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-12/u-s-f-16s-launch-first-attack-from-turkey-against-islamic-state

[flamin lib]

1. F-16s?

Where the hell are the FA-18s and F-22s we tax payers spent a $ brazillion on?

I guess when it comes down to it ya' use what works; the cheap, reliable, fast, maneuverable and safe airplane.

Now, even though the F-22 hasn't achieved its operational target, we're paying $1.4 Trillion for the F-35 which, in a flight test, was defeated by an F-16 even though the F-16 was carrying external fuel tanks and weaponry.