Air and missile warfare

Air and missile warfare is an integral part of almost all armed conflicts. Indeed, some conflicts involve one party employing these capabilities almost exclusively, such as the NATO air campaigns against both Serbia and Libya. While air and missile capabilities fall within the category of weapons and tactics generally, unique aspects of these capabilities have generated important specific regulatory provisions applicable to this aspect of warfare. Accordingly, this chapter explores unique aspects of aerial warfare to include not only the use of aircraft, but also missiles, rockets, and remotely piloted vehicles. Dealing with the range of weapon systems falling within the scope of air and missile warfare highlights the technological change that has long underpinned this area of legal conflict regulation. The analysis focuses on competing tensions between the strategic and operational value these weapons provide—weapons that have proven to be an essential component of successful military operations—and humanitarian concerns associated with the immense destructive impact these weapons bring to bear. Both the general and the unique aspects of regulating this aspect of modern armed conflicts are explored.