And please re-read what I posted.
Never said we have constant AWACs or fighter CAP.
We have other methods that I am sure you are aware we use that do not involve manned flights to monitor/track airspace. . .and we do not fly ISR assets without a complete airspace picture, let alone during manned strikes.
Which takes us back to my original statement. We do not have static forces in place to engage an Israeli strike package, e.g. Patriot batteries and CAP.
Knowing someone is there and targeting them are two different problems. Simply knowing they are there only puts you 90 minutes ahead of the CNN news ticker.
I said we would have to conduct a specific mission if our intent was to engage them, and that’s the fact of the matter. Given the transit times and distances to northern Iraq from the Gulf or Med, it couldn’t be a reactionary mission. You would have to preposition tanker assets, and you would certainly want to get AWACS coverage of the area.