Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mountedautomatic weapons.[1] Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such as fast boats, using smaller-caliber weapons and targeting stationary or slowly-moving targets.[citation needed]
The word is an adaptation ofGermanstrafen (pronounced[ˈʃtʁaːfn̩]ⓘ), topunish, specifically from the humorous adaptation of the Germananti-British sloganGott strafe England (May God punish England), dating back toWorld War I.[2][3][4]
Guns used in strafing range incaliber from 7.62–14.5 mm (0.300–0.571 in)machine guns, to 20–40 mm (0.79–1.57 in)autocannon orrotary cannon. Although ground attack using automatic weapons fire is very often accompanied withbombing orrocket fire, the term "strafing" does not specifically include the last two.[5]
The term "strafing" can cover either fixed guns, or aimable (flexible) guns. Fixed guns firing directly ahead tend to be more predominant onfixed wing aircraft, whilehelicopters tend to use gimballed weapons which can be fired in many different directions independent of the direction the aircraft is pointing in (in most cases, flexible guns on a fixed wing aircraft are for defense purposes only, although they can sometimes be used to fire on ground targets to limited effect).
Some fixed wing aircraft, likefighter-bombers, are capable of flying eitherair-combat missions or ground attack missions (P-47 Thunderbolt), while others are dedicated ground-attack types (Il-2 Sturmovik). In cases where an aircraft is capable of both types of combat, when it is assigned to a ground attack role, and thus expected to be using the guns mostly for strafing, the fixed weapons are often mounted so that theconvergence point is lower and at a greater range than would be used for air combat. This is helpful because it allows the pilot to aim at a target without having to dive towards the ground as steeply, decreasing the risk of collision with the ground and increasing the amount of firing time available before having to pull up, and it also increases the range from the target, helping avoidanti-aircraft fire and potential damage from exploding targets. Consequently, several types of aircraft-mountedgun pods like the Soviet SPPU-22 allowed for a mechanical depression of their barrels.
Because of the low altitude and relatively low airspeed required for accurate strafing, it is very risky for the pilot, who is exposed not only to the risk offlight-into-terrain and obstacles such as power lines, but also to anti-aircraft weapons, includingsurface-to-air missiles (both vehicle mounted andhand-held), anti-aircraft artillery and small caliber weapons fire (such asmachine guns andsmall arms). Planes purposely designed for ground attack may include additionalarmour around and underneath the cockpit and other vulnerable areas such as engines to protect the pilot and key flight components, while aircraft designed mostly for air combat tend to have most of their armor placed to protect directly ahead or to the rear, where fire from other aircraft is most likely, leaving them more vulnerable to fire from directly below or to the sides, where much ground fire often comes from.
While the earliest use of military aircraft was for observation and directing of artillery, strafing was frequently practised inWorld War I. Trenches and supply columns were routinely attacked from the air in the second half of the war. Strafing withmachine guns was used when precision was needed (facing small targets), but non-strafing attack methods (primarily small bombs) were preferred for larger targets, area targets, or when low-altitude flying was too risky.
The German army was the first to introduce a class of aircraft specially designed for strafing, theground-attack aircraft. Planes built specifically for strafing include the German World War IJunkers J.I, which was armored to protect it from ground-based gunfire. The Junkers J.I. had two downward-facing machine guns that were used for strafing.
These developments continued throughWorld War II with dedicated aircraft including the concept of the heavily protected cockpit or "bathtub" to permit the pilot to survive counterfire from anti-aircraft batteries.
The Luftwaffe's best strafing plane was theJunkers Ju 87 Stuka. The Ju 87 G variant had two Rheinmetall-Borsig 37 mm (1.5 in) Flak 18 guns each mounted under the wing.
For the RAF, the best ground attack plane was theHawker Hurricane II. It was armed with four 20 mm (0.79 in) wing-mounted cannon.[6] TheHawker Typhoon and its derivativeHawker Tempest were used in the later stages of the war. They also had four 20 mm (0.79 in) cannons, while also being able to carry up to 8 "60 lb"RP-3 rockets.[7]
For the US, theRepublic P-47 Thunderbolt was one of the key ground attack planes. It was armed with eight .50 calibre (12.7 mm) machine guns. Another aircraft that was important in that role was theNorth American B-25 Mitchell. It was used for low-altitude strafing runs in the Pacific War.
The RussianIlyushin IL-2 Sturmovik was one of the key Russian ground attack planes. It had heavy armour around the engine, underside and canopy. It was armed with 20, 23, or 37 mm (0.79, 0.91, or 1.46 in) cannon, depending on the model.[8]
AnRCAFSpitfire of412 Squadron piloted byCharley Fox strafed the command car ofErwin Rommel on 17 July 1944 nearSainte-Foy-de-Montgommery, affecting his possible participation in the 20 July 1944Operation Valkyrie coup.
In theKorean War (1950–1953),US Air Force planes strafed targets deep behind the front line and had a perceptible impact on the progress of the ground war, but the concept of strafing was already in decline.
In the 1960s, whenprecision-guided weapons became widespread, strafing temporarily fell out of favor as unnecessarily risky and some Americanfighter aircraft orattack aircraft (such as theF-4 Phantom II andA-6 Intruder) then did not have built-in cannon or machine guns. In theVietnam War, that was found to be a deficiency, and improvised "gunships" had to be used in strafing missions. Gunships like the AC-47 Spooky, AC-119 Specter, and early models of theAC-130 Spooky gunship proved to be devastating defenders of besieged US Special Forces camps.
TheA-10 Thunderbolt II is an American twin-engine, straight-wingjet aircraft developed byFairchild-Republic in the early 1970s which is the only United States Air Force aircraft designed solely forclose air support of ground forces. The A-10 was built to attacktanks,armored vehicles, and other ground targets with limitedair defenses, often through strafing.
The A-10 was designed around theGAU-8 Avenger, a 30 mm (1.2 in)rotary cannon, which is the airplane's primary armament and the heaviest such automatic cannon mounted on an aircraft. The A-10'sairframe was designed for survivability, with measures such as 1,200 pounds (540 kg) ofarmor for protection of the cockpit and aircraft systems that enables the aircraft to continue flying after taking significant damage. The A-10's official name comes from theRepublic P-47 Thunderbolt ofWorld War II, a fighter that was particularly effective at close air support. The A-10 is the main US plane designed to do strafing runs.
Since 2001, Coalition pilots inIraq andAfghanistan have used strafing runs to support ground forces in areas where explosive ordnance could cause unacceptable civilian casualties. Strafing runs done byF-16s are very risky for the pilot. The cities ofDamascus andAleppo were strafed by helicopter gunships in theSyrian civil war.[9][10]
In 2004, the United States Air Force accidentally strafed one of its own country's middle schools while training in thestrafing of the Little Egg Harbor Intermediate School incident.
strafing — The delivery of automatic weapons fire by aircraft on ground targets.
