Aerial warfare of the Hayren War

Aerial warfare of the Hayren War was a sporadic affair over the course of the Hayren War owing to the complex situation on the ground and the uneven nature of the conflict. While the Hayren Republic processed no real air force of note, both the Syaran Army Air Corps and the Ruvelkan Imperial Air Force took regular part in the conflict, performing aerial reconnaissance, air interdiction, and air support. Although both the Republic of Syara and Ruvelka attempted to avoid the conflict escalating into a direct war between the two states, frequent clashes and military operations conducted against one another frequently threatened to spill over. Although total hostilities never broke out, clashes between the two nations produced several major battles, including aerial cofrontations and engagements.

The Ruvelkan air force in its post war assessment concluded that a total of 273 "aerial incidents" occurred between 1974-1980. The majority of these were interceptions of Syara or Ruvelkan aircraft by their counterparts, and most were resolved peacefully. On several dozen occasions warning shots were fired, and on 36 incidents direct air-to-air combat resulted in an shootdown of an aircraft. These 36 engagements resulted in the downing of 23 Syaran aircraft and 17 Ruvelkan aircraft. An additional 33 Ruvelkan aircraft and 14 Syaran aircraft were downed by air defense systems and surface-to-air missiles; more than half of Ruvelkan aircrft downed by SAMs were helicopters.

Both sides attempted to limit the scale of their operations to prevent escalation, and as a result most engagements occurred between individual aircraft or individual flights; the largest air battle of the war involved 11 aircraft. The majority of air operations were combat air patrols and air support operations for ground forces. The sporadic and inconsistent nature prevented it from significantly influencing the war on the ground, but the conflict provided combat experience for a wide variety of aircraft. Both Ruvelka and Syara made use of a variety of aircraft, involving fighter jets from four different national origins. In some cases the experience of these aircraft went on to influence later developments of fighter aircraft.

Aircraft used

Both the Syaran Army Air Corps and the Ruvelkan Imperial Air Force employed aircraft from a variety of sources. The SAAC fielded aircraft from both Syara and Æþurheim while the RIAF made heavy use of Cacertian and Acrean aircraft.

Throughout the course of the war the RIAF fielded the following aircraft:

• Aestrup-Sibrian MRCA
• AFSF-8 Folivori
• AFASF-10 Donnola
• AFSF-9 Libellula
• Norderstedt EF 106 Lycan

The SAAC fielded the following aircraft:

• Alkyonides
• Coronis
• Corvus
• Cycnus
• Erinys
• Nephele
• Strix
• Tereus

List of aerial engagements

1975

18 September, 1975: A Ruvelkan AFASF-10 Donnola shoots down a Syaran Strix attack aircraft after it strafed Ruvelkan ground forces in Armavir. The Syaran government later stated that the Syaran pilot had mistaken the Ruvelkan troops for Hayren militia known to be operating in the area.

1976

6 May, 1976: A Ruvelkan AFASF-10 Donnola downs a Syaran Tereus reconnaissance plane after it strayed into Ruvelkan airspace. The pilot ejected and was returned to Syara.

11 October, 1976: Syaran Cycnus fighter shoots down a Ruvelkan Norderstedt EF 106 Lycan that was operating near Syaran forces in Armavir. Pilot ejected and returned to Ruvelkan territory.

1977

20 March, 1977: 1977 battle over Malhkirin. Amid rising tensions between Ruvelka and the Republic of Syara, two Syaran Erinys fighters engage two Ruvelkan AFASF-10 Donnola Air Superiority Fighters, resulting in both Syaran aircraft shot down for the loss of one Donnola.

19 June, 1977: Syaran Alkyonides is shot down by a Ruvelkan AFASF-10 Donnola Air Superiority Fighter after the Alkyonides fired on a patrolling AFSF-9 Libellula.

8 November, 1977: Syaran Nephele downs a Ruvelkan Aestrup-Sibrian MRCA after a brief dogfight.

1978

16 February, 1978: Syaran Nephele downs a Ruvelkan AFSF-8 Folivori that was attacking Syaran-aligned Hayren forces.

4 May, 1978: 1978 battle over Takoushian Valley. Two Syaran Cycnus fighters escorting a flight of three Strix attack aircraft engage two Ruvelkan Norderstedt EF 106 Lycans, who are later joined by two AFSF-9 Libellula interceptors. One Strix is shot down in exchange for one Lycan, with another Strix and Libellula damaged.

17 June, 1978: Syaran Strix is shot down by a Ruvelkan Aestrup-Sibrian MRCA.

28 August, 1978: 1978 air battle over Vahe. Two Nephele along with two Erinys engage two AFSF-9 Libellulas, two AFASF-10 Donnolas, and one Aestrup-Sibrian MRCA. Both Erinys, one Libellulas, and one Donnola shot down.

16 September, 1978: Aestrup-Sibrian MRCA downs a Cycnus escorting a Coronis bomber. Coronis escaped unharmed after short pursuit by the MRCA.

1979

7 January, 1979: Two Syaran Alkyonides interceptors engage two Ruvelkan AFSF-9 Libellula interceptors, resulting in both sides losing one aircraft.

13 April, 1979: Syaran Erinys shot down by Ruvelkan Norderstedt EF 106 Lycan.

15 April, 1979: 1979 air battle over Takvor. Three Syaran Cycnus and one Nephele engage Ruvelkan combat air patrol consisting of two Aestrup-Sibrian MRCA's and two AFASF-10 Donnolas. One Donnola and one MRCA are shot down in exchange for one Nephele and one Cycnus. Another Cycnus was heavily damaged and later written off.

2 November, 1979: 1979 Raid on Taszár Air Base. Two Coronis bombers escorted by a flight of two Nepheles attack Taszár Air Base in the Aszód District. Two Ruvelkan AFSF-9 Libellulas intercept and succeed in damaging one Coronis and shooting down one Nephele.

6 December, 1979: 1979 air battle over Arpag. Two Nephele, two Cycnus, and two Erinys engage three AFASF-10 Donnola and two Aestrup-Sibrian MRCA. One Erinys, one Cycnus, and two Donnolas are shot down.

1980

5 January, 1980: Syaran Tereus on a reconnaissance mission is downed by a Norderstedt EF 106 Lycan.

19 January, 1980: 1980 air battle over Khatchouhi. Three Syaran Nephele escorting a flight of four Corvus attack aircraft engage two Aestrup-Sibrian MRCAs and two AFASF-10 Donnolas. Both MRCAs and one Donnola shot down for one Nephele.

22 January, 1980: Dogfight between two Cycnus and two AFASF-10 Donnolas end with one Cycnus shot down.

3 February, 1980: 1980 air battle over Heghnar. Two Nephele and two Cycnus escorting a flight of four Strix attack aircraft are intercepted by one Norderstedt EF 106 Lycan, two AFASF-10 Donnolas, and two AFSF-9 Libellula. Both Cycnus and one Strix aircraft are shot down in exchange for one Donnola and one Libellula.

Legacy

Due to its sporadic and generally disorganized nature, the aerial warfare aspect of the Hayren War often goes unmentioned in the greater history of Ruvelkan-Syaran relations. Because it failed to significantly influence the overall direction of the conflict, and the much larger air actions of the Refusal War, many of the details of air campaigns of the Hayren War are largely folded into the air battles of the Granika Border War as a whole. Hayren historian Salpi Tjeknavorian compiled much of the information regarding the air battles of the Hayren War and argued the events were a significant element in the history of Aerial warfare. Tjeknavorian points out the the Hayren War was among the last time dedicated interceptor aircrafts directly engaged on another, and the wide variety of aircraft used offers significant insight into their capabilities and performances, especially for some designs which saw limited use elsewhere.

The air operations of the Hayren War would also represent the last major actions of the Syaran Army Air Corps, as it would disintegrate along with the rest of the Armed Forces of the Syaran Republic three years later upon the outbreak of the Refusal Crisis.