OCR: Maintaining a no-fly zone isn’t easy, especially when you’re seeking to do so (as Italy and France will do) over the Med. They’ll have the use of the French aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, but will likely deploy most of their aircraft from ground-based facilities, which means travel times of around an hour to an hour and a half to Libya and it also means airborne refueling.
Easier still would be to use US subs in the Med and hit Gaddafi’s airfields and support infrastructure (i.e. radar, refueling and re-arming facilities) with sub-launched cruise missiles and ballistic missiles (carrying conventional warheads). This way, we don’t have commit US ground based forces (out of Aviano and Sigonella), nor do we have to pull a carrier battle group into the Med (there isn’t one there presently).
Gaddafi has been able to swing the battle back in his favor through the use of air power, as well as using a “fire brigade” system, whereby he choppers his mercenaries to various hot spots. If you eliminate these capabilities, you level the playing field for the rebels.
