Sat27Mar1999 - F-117 stealth bomber shot down by Serbs

[TonyGosling]

Callsign was Vega 31, pilot was Lt.Col Dale Zelko.
http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/military/read.main/25309/

Basically the target that night was of high importance and near Belgrade. It was also a difficult one because of exceptional Russian state-of-the-art defence systems operated by motivated and well-trained crews.
Several missions were sent previouosly against that target without success, his was on the 4th night. I'll translate directly:

During my initial penetration into Yugoslav airspace, I was monitoring a primary attack frequency, listening to other events that were happening as part of the attack sorties. Even before boarding, on the aircraft shelter, i sensed that if there was a night where it was particularly appropriate for my plane to get shot down, this was it. I was plainly conscious of my vulnerabilities, and the risks and dangers that the mission presented. The information coming to me through the radio during ingress only increased the sensation that something bad would happen that night. Thus, when it did happen, I was not surprised at all. To tell you the truth, I watched the whole thing happen.

He was asked whether he received any RWR warning, to which he did not answer owing to the fact that it involved the Nighthawk's capabilities. Still secret. He went on.. But I can tell you that I saw the entire ground-to-air engagement and even during the initial stages there was no doubt that I had no way out. I did everything to avoid impact,but the truth is there was no way out. And remember, I had a front row seat during the entire engagement. So, was it pilot error? No. Was it maintenance? No. Was it a good shot? Yes, it was a good shot.

So he was detected!

He goes on to say that he saw two incoming missiles, the 1st went over and so close he was surpised the proximity fuse did'nt go. He felt the shock wave as it blew behind him. He then reacquired the 2nd incoming and realized it was going to go right through him. He does'nt know whether it was direct hit, but notes that wreckage pics show the entire left wing to be missing.


The Legacy of Vega 31
Wreckage of a USAF F-117, shot down over Serbia during Operation Allied Force almost 11 years ago. Recent reports suggest that China bought pieces of the downed jet, and copied the stealth technology for use in their new J-20 fighter.
http://formerspook.blogspot.com/2011/01/legacy-of-vega-31.html
March 27, 1999: it was the fourth night of Operation Allied Force, the NATO bombing campaign against Serbia. The effort's initial phase had gone remarkably well; U.S. and allied aircraft had inflicted heavy damaged on Serb air defenses and other critical targets, without the loss of a single NATO aircraft. When the Serbs tried to fight back, they generally paid a high price; three of their MiG-29 Fulcrums had been shot down in the early hours of the conflict, and a number of surface-to-air missile (SAM) batterys had been knocked out of action as well.

But the Serbs would soon exact their revenge--and against an unlikely target. The first U.S. aircraft lost in Allied Force was an F-117 stealth fighter. Almost invisible to radar (and largely invulnerable to enemy air defenses), the Nighthawk had made its reputation over Iraq almost a decade earlier and was assigned to high-value Serbian targets.

After dropping his bombs near Belgrade, Lt Col Dale Zelko turned his F-117 towards the northwest, in the general direction of Aviano AB, Italy, where the stealth jets were deployed. It was his second sortie of Allied Force and everything seemed routine--or, as routine as a combat mission could be--until the aircraft's defensive system went off, telling Zelko that his jet (Callsign Vega 31) was being targeted by enemy air defenses.

Second later, a Serb SA-3 exploded near the F-117, sending it out of control. Realizing the aircraft would not survive, Zelko pulled the ejection handles and left the crippled jet. What followed was a six hour search-and-rescue mission to recover Lt Col Zelko before he could be captured by Serb security forces. The story of that rescue has been retold in various publications, including this detailed, 2006 account by Darrel Whitcomb of Air Force magazine. It's an amazing read, and a fine tribute to the chopper crews, A-10 pilots and pararescuemen who flew deep into Serb territory to retrieve Colonel Zelko.

But the final flight of Vega 31 may have another legacy. In recent days, various media outlets have reported that technology used in China's new stealth fighter may have been copied from the downed F-117. According to the U.K. Telegraph, Chinese agents scoured the Serbian countryside for Nighthawk components after it crashed:

..The Admiral who was Croatia's chief of staff during the Kosovo War has said he believes that China formulated the technology for its J-20 jet from an American F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter that was shot down over Serbia in March 1999.
"At the time, our intelligence reports told of Chinese agents criss-crossing the region where the F-117 disintegrated, buying up parts of the plane from local farmers," Admiral Davor Domazet-Loso said. "We believe the Chinese used those materials to gain an insight into secret stealth technologies."