The fall of Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's home town, marked the end of significant combat operations in Iraq and the UK and USA have begun to return deployed forces home. PAUL LEWIS AND STEWART PENNEY REPORT
20 March US Navy launches 39 Raytheon BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles and US Air Force sends two Lockheed F-117s to attack Baghdad.
21 March Iraqi surface-to-surface missiles intercepted by Patriot missiles.
22 March More than 1,000 sorties flown. More than 400 Tomahawks and about 100 air-launched cruise missiles fired and 700 PGMs dropped so far.
24 March Coalition aircraft fly more than 1,500 sorties, of which tankers fly about 15%. PGM use tops 2,000.
28 March USA declares air supremacy over 95% of Iraq.
30 March Coalition operating from Iraqi airfields.
31 March About 2,000 sorties flown, including 800 strike missions.
1 April PGM use increases to 10,000 - over 70% of munitions are precision-guided.
3 April US Congress votes to approve $80 billion supplementary budget to pay for conflict.
4 April Saddam International Airport captured and renamed Baghdad International Airport.
6 April Lockheed Martin C-130 lands at Baghdad airport.
7 April 750 Tomahawks and 18,000 PGMs used so far.
8 April B-1B attacks "regime target" in Baghdad, weapons are retargeted in flight. Boeing C-17 airlifts armour to airfield north west of Baghdad.
9 April Baghdad falls. Strike mission numbers declining, airlift sorties rising.
11 April Tikrit falls, war effectively ends.
Source: Flight International
