"Tom Cooper" wrote in message
...
For example, the only day in "early Feb 88" on which F-14s engaged Mirage
F.1s in two different engagements over the Persian Gulf was 9th of
February.
That, however, is not a date I'd describe as "early February".

Why not? If you break the month evenly in to"early", "mid" and "late"
(that is, "thirds") the 9th falls in to the first third of the month or
the "early" part.