Remember when Regan wanted to 'remind' Qaddafi that he was touchable. Some of our allies would NOT give the USA clearance to fly over their countries, "Among operational United States tactical aircraft, only the
General Dynamics F-111 and the
A-6 Intruder possessed the ability to attack at night with the required precision."
en.wikipedia.org
"
France refused to allow the F-111s to fly over French territory, which added 2,600 total nautical miles to the journey from England and back."
On April 14, 1986, the United States launches air strikes against Libya in retaliation for the Libyan sponsorship of terrorism against American troops and citizens. The raid, which began shortly before 7 p.m. EST (2 a.m., April 15 in Libya), involved more than 100 U.S. Air Force and Navy...
www.history.com