I thought it was a GREAT movie. You just have to suspend belief.
As stated, an airplane breaking up at Mach 10 and you survive? (There is a whole theory on the internet that he actually died in the crash and the rest of the movie was his brain correcting the wrongs of his life in the moment before death)
Why didn't they send in cruise missiles to take out the sam sites?
Cuz.... SAM sites can be mobile, agile, and most important hostile.
If they are worried about planes coming after them after they completed the mission, why not launch a bunch of F18's to be ready to help?
Cuzz... they had to get "feet wet" and at the point they were either dead, or lucky with nothing to worry about.
Why not just take out the sams and the runway and send in B52's with MOAB's?
Cuzzz... you're thinking the Air Force could have actually pulled this off using YF 117, B-2 Stealth let alone some of the other things we don't know about in the arsenal.. now, would that have made for an action packed movie?
But again, great movie!