![]() ![]() The Vietnamese Air Force, purportedly poorly trained and equipped with mostly antiquated fighters, was proving itself capable of defending itself against the a vastly more well-equipped foe. The U.S. This poor kill ratio greatly distressed the leadership of the U.S. (Historians have recently disputed this claim and some of estimated the kill ratio in Korea to be closer to 8 to 1). This was much lower than the 14 to 1 kill ratio claimed in the Korean War. aircraft shot down by Vietnamese fighters. air forces tallied a disappointing 2 kills for every U.S. The United States air forces found that its reliance on technology was not up to the task of providing air superiority over North Vietnam and the U.S. ![]() Fighter aircraft like the F-4, with powerful radars and beyond visual range missiles would sweep the sky of enemy fighters. Older fighters, it was thought, would not fair as well as the F-4. The air-war over North Vietnam, especially the fight against the North Vietnamese MiG aircraft, drew much media and military leadership attention because it would put this theory to the test, albeit against a drastically inferior foe. From 1965 to 1968 and then again in 1972 United States aircraft flew into an almost daily battle over North Vietnam against a much smaller and vastly technologically inferior foe. Prior to the Vietnam War, leadership in the US Air Force and US Navy felt that superior technology, in aircraft and weapons, would lead to air supremacy over any enemy. Gundlach, Senior Air Warfare Analyst, Retired Marine Corps Fighter Pilot and Denver Bronco fan. ![]()
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