1.
Israel
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Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in the Middle East, on the southeastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the northern shore of the Red Sea. The country contains geographically diverse features within its small area. Israels economy and technology center is Tel Aviv, while its seat of government and proclaimed capital is Jerusalem, in 1947, the United Nations adopted a Partition Plan for Mandatory Palestine recommending the creation of independent Arab and Jewish states and an internationalized Jerusalem. The plan was accepted by the Jewish Agency for Palestine, next year, the Jewish Agency declared the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel, to be known as the State of Israel. Israel has since fought several wars with neighboring Arab states, in the course of which it has occupied territories including the West Bank, Golan Heights and it extended its laws to the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem, but not the West Bank. Israels occupation of the Palestinian territories is the worlds longest military occupation in modern times, efforts to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have not resulted in peace. However, peace treaties between Israel and both Egypt and Jordan have successfully been signed, the population of Israel, as defined by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, was estimated in 2017 to be 8,671,100 people. It is the worlds only Jewish-majority state, with 74. 8% being designated as Jewish, the countrys second largest group of citizens are Arabs, at 20. 8%. The great majority of Israeli Arabs are Sunni Muslims, including significant numbers of semi-settled Negev Bedouins, other minorities include Arameans, Armenians, Assyrians, Black Hebrew Israelites, Circassians, Maronites and Samaritans. Israel also hosts a significant population of foreign workers and asylum seekers from Africa and Asia, including illegal migrants from Sudan, Eritrea. In its Basic Laws, Israel defines itself as a Jewish, Israel is a representative democracy with a parliamentary system, proportional representation and universal suffrage. The prime minister is head of government and the Knesset is the legislature, Israel is a developed country and an OECD member, with the 35th-largest economy in the world by nominal gross domestic product as of 2016. The country benefits from a skilled workforce and is among the most educated countries in the world with one of the highest percentage of its citizens holding a tertiary education degree. The country has the highest standard of living in the Middle East and the third highest in Asia, in the early weeks of independence, the government chose the term Israeli to denote a citizen of Israel, with the formal announcement made by Minister of Foreign Affairs Moshe Sharett. The names Land of Israel and Children of Israel have historically used to refer to the biblical Kingdom of Israel. The name Israel in these phrases refers to the patriarch Jacob who, jacobs twelve sons became the ancestors of the Israelites, also known as the Twelve Tribes of Israel or Children of Israel. The earliest known artifact to mention the word Israel as a collective is the Merneptah Stele of ancient Egypt. The area is known as the Holy Land, being holy for all Abrahamic religions including Judaism, Christianity, Islam
2.
Israeli Air Force
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The Israeli Air Force operates as the aerial warfare branch of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28,1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence, as of May 2012 Aluf Amir Eshel serves as the Air Force Commander. The Israeli Air Force formed on May 28,1948, using commandeered or donated civilian aircraft and obsolete, eventually, more aircraft were procured, including Boeing B-17s, Bristol Beaufighters, de Havilland Mosquitoes and P-51D Mustangs. The Israeli Air Force played an important part in Operation Kadesh, on June 5,1967, the first day of the Six-Day War, the Israeli Air Force executed Operation Focus, crippling the opposing Arab air forces and attaining air supremacy for the remainder of the war. Shortly after the end of the Six-Day War, Egypt initiated the War of Attrition, on October 7,1973, the IAF conducted Operation Tagar against Egyptian air bases of the Egyptian Air Defence Force. Although initially successful, with 10 bases hit, the urgency of the fighting on the Golan heights forced the operations suspension, since that war most of Israels military aircraft have been obtained from the United States. Among these are the F-4 Phantom II, A-4 Skyhawk, F-15 Eagle, the Israeli Air Force has also operated a number of domestically produced types such as the IAI Nesher, and later, the more advanced IAI Kfir. On June 7,1981, eight IAF F-16A fighters covered by six F-15A jets carried out Operation Opera to destroy the Iraqi nuclear facilities at Osiraq, on June 9,1982, the Israeli Air Force carried out Operation Mole Cricket 19, crippling the Syrian air defence array. The IAF continued to mount attacks on Hezbollah and PLO positions in south Lebanon, on October 1,1985, In response to a PLO terrorist attack which murdered three Israeli civilians in Cyprus, the Israeli air force carried out Operation Wooden Leg. The strike involved the bombing of PLO Headquarters in Tunis, by F-15 Eagles, in 1991, the IAF carried out Operation Solomon which brought Ethiopian Jews to Israel. In 1993 and 1996, the IAF participated in Operation Accountability and Operation Grapes of Wrath and it took part in many missions since, including during the 2006 Lebanon War, Operation Cast Lead, Operation Pillar of Cloud and Operation Protective Edge. On September 6,2007, the Israeli Air Force successfully bombed an alleged Syrian nuclear reactor in Operation Orchard, squadron markings usually go on the tail fin. Forerunners of the Israeli Air Force were the Palestine Flying Service established by the Irgun in 1937, and Sherut Avir, the Israeli Air Force formed on May 28,1948, shortly after Israel declared statehood and found itself under attack. The force consisted of a hodge-podge of commandeered or donated civilian aircraft converted to military use, a variety of obsolete and surplus ex-World War II combat-aircraft were quickly sourced by various means to supplement this fleet. Creativity and resourcefulness were the foundations of early Israeli military success in the air, Israels new fighter-arm first went into action on May 29,1948, assisting efforts to halt the Egyptian advance from Gaza northwards. Four newly arrived Avia S-199s, flown by Lou Lenart, Modi Alon, Ezer Weizman and Eddie Cohen, although damage to the enemy was minimal, two aircraft were lost and Cohen killed, nevertheless the attack achieved its goal and stopped the Egyptians. After un-assembled planes were strafed on the ground on May 30th at Ekron airfield the fighters were moved to makeshift strip located around the current Herzliya Airport. The Israeli Air Force scored its first aerial victories on June 3 when Modi Alon, flying Avia D.112, the first dogfight against enemy fighters took place a few days later, on June 8, when Gideon Lichtaman shot down an Egyptian Spitfire
3.
Anti-aircraft warfare
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Anti-aircraft warfare or counter-air defence is defined by NATO as all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action. They include ground-and air-based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and it may be used to protect naval, ground, and air forces in any location. However, for most countries the main effort has tended to be homeland defence, NATO refers to airborne air defence as counter-air and naval air defence as anti-aircraft warfare. Missile defence is an extension of air defence as are initiatives to adapt air defence to the task of intercepting any projectile in flight, a surface-based air defence capability can also be deployed offensively to deny the use of airspace to an opponent. Until the 1950s, guns firing ballistic munitions ranging from 20 mm to 150 mm were the weapons, guided missiles then became dominant. The term air defence was probably first used by Britain when Air Defence of Great Britain was created as a Royal Air Force command in 1925. However, arrangements in the UK were also called anti-aircraft, abbreviated as AA, after the First World War it was sometimes prefixed by Light or Heavy to classify a type of gun or unit. Nicknames for anti-aircraft guns include AA, AAA or triple-A, an abbreviation of anti-aircraft artillery, ack-ack, NATO defines anti-aircraft warfare as measures taken to defend a maritime force against attacks by airborne weapons launched from aircraft, ships, submarines and land-based sites. In some armies the term All-Arms Air Defence is used for air defence by nonspecialist troops, other terms from the late 20th century include GBAD with related terms SHORAD and MANPADS. Anti-aircraft missiles are variously called surface-to-air missile, abbreviated and pronounced SAM, non-English terms for air defence include the German FlaK, whence English flak, and the Russian term Protivovozdushnaya oborona, a literal translation of anti-air defence, abbreviated as PVO. In Russian the AA systems are called zenitnye systems, in French, air defence is called DCA. The maximum distance at which a gun or missile can engage an aircraft is an important figure, however, many different definitions are used but unless the same definition is used, performance of different guns or missiles cannot be compared. For AA guns only the part of the trajectory can be usefully used. By the late 1930s the British definition was that height at which an approaching target at 400 mph can be engaged for 20 seconds before the gun reaches 70 degrees elevation. However, effective ceiling for heavy AA guns was affected by nonballistic factors, The maximum running time of the fuse, the capability of fire control instruments to determine target height at long range. The essence of air defence is to detect aircraft and destroy them. The critical issue is to hit a target moving in three-dimensional space, Air defence evolution covered the areas of sensors and technical fire control, weapons, and command and control. At the start of the 20th century these were very primitive or non-existent
4.
Fighter aircraft
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A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat against other aircraft, as opposed to bombers and attack aircraft, whose main mission is to attack ground targets. The hallmarks of a fighter are its speed, maneuverability, many fighters have secondary ground-attack capabilities, and some are designed as dual-purpose fighter-bombers, often aircraft that do not fulfill the standard definition are called fighters. This may be for political or national security reasons, for advertising purposes, a fighters main purpose is to establish air superiority over a battlefield. Since World War I, achieving and maintaining air superiority has been considered essential for victory in conventional warfare, the word fighter did not become the official English-language term for such aircraft until after World War I. In the British Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force these aircraft were referred to as scouts into the early 1920s, the U. S. Army called their fighters pursuit aircraft from 1916 until the late 1940s. In most languages a fighter aircraft is known as a hunter, exceptions include Russian, where a fighter is an истребитель, meaning exterminator, and Hebrew where it is matose krav. As a part of nomenclature, a letter is often assigned to various types of aircraft to indicate their use. In Russia I was used, while the French continue to use C and this has always been the case, for instance the Sopwith Camel and other fighting scouts of World War I performed a great deal of ground-attack work. Several aircraft, such as the F-111 and F-117, have received fighter designations but had no fighter capability due to political or other reasons, the F-111B variant was originally intended for a fighter role with the U. S. Navy, but it was cancelled. This blurring follows the use of fighters from their earliest days for attack or strike operations against ground targets by means of strafing or dropping small bombs, versatile multirole fighter-bombers such as the F/A-18 Hornet are a less expensive option than having a range of specialized aircraft types. An interceptor is generally an aircraft intended to target bombers and so often trades maneuverability for climb rate, fighters were developed in World War I to deny enemy aircraft and dirigibles the ability to gather information by reconnaissance. Early fighters were very small and lightly armed by later standards, and most were built with a wooden frame, covered with fabric. As control of the airspace over armies became increasingly important all of the major powers developed fighters to support their military operations, between the wars, wood was largely replaced by steel tubing, then aluminium tubing, and finally aluminium stressed skin structures began to predominate. By World War II, most fighters were all-metal monoplanes armed with batteries of guns or cannons. By the end of the war, turbojet engines were replacing piston engines as the means of propulsion, further increasing aircraft speed. Since the weight of the engine was so less than on piston engined fighters. This in turn required the development of ejection seats so the pilot could escape, in the 1950s, radar was fitted to day fighters, since pilots could no longer see far enough ahead to prepare for any opposition. Since then, radar capabilities have grown enormously and are now the method of target acquisition
5.
General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon variants
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A large number of variants of the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon have been produced by General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, and various licensed manufacturers. The details of the F-16 variants, along with major modification programs, two single-seat YF-16 prototypes were built for the Light Weight Fighter competition. The first YF-16 was rolled out at Fort Worth on 13 December 1973 and accidentally accomplished its first flight on 21 January 1974, the second prototype first flew on 9 March 1974. Both YF-16 prototypes participated in the flyoff against the Northrop YF-17 prototypes, with the F-16 winning the Air Combat Fighter competition, in January 1975, the Air Force ordered eight full-scale development F-16s – six single-seat F-16A and a pair of two-seat F-16B – for test and evaluation. The first FSD F-16A flew on 8 December 1976 and the first FSD F-16B on 8 August 1977, over the years, these aircraft have been used as test demonstrators for a variety of research, development and modification study programs. The F-16A and F-16B were initially equipped with the Westinghouse AN/APG-66 pulse-doppler radar, Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-200 turbofan, the USAF bought 375 F-16As and 125 F-16Bs, with delivery completed in March 1985. Early blocks featured relatively minor differences between each, most were later upgraded to the Block 10 configuration in the early 1980s. There were 94 Block 1,197 Block 5, and 312 Block 10 aircraft produced, Block 1 is the early production model with the nose cone painted black. The Soviet Union significantly reduced the export of titanium during the late 1970s, the Block 15 also gained the Have Quick II secure UHF radio. To counter the weight of the new hardpoints, the horizontal stabilizers were enlarged by 30%. Block 15 is the most numerous variant of the F-16, with 983 produced, the last one was delivered in 1996 to Thailand. The Block 20 computers are significantly improved in comparison to that of the versions that later integrated into post 1997 Block 50/52. The Republic of China received 150 F-16A/B Block 20 aircraft, the Block 25 F-16C first flew in June 1984 and entered USAF service in September. The aircraft are fitted with the Westinghouse AN/APG-68 radar and have improved precision night-attack capability, Block 25s were first delivered with the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-200 engine and later upgraded to the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-220E. With 209 Block 25 C-models and 35 D-models delivered, today the USAFs Air National Guard and Air Education, one F-16C, nicknamed the Lethal Lady, had flown over 7,000 hours by April 2008. From this point on, blocks ending in 0 are powered by GE, the first Block 30 F-16 entered service in 1987. Major differences include the carriage of the AGM-45 Shrike, AGM-88 HARM, and the AIM-120 missiles, from Block 30D, aircraft were fitted with larger engine air intakes for the increased-thrust GE engine. Since the Block 32 retained the Pratt and Whitney F-100 engine, a total of 733 aircraft were produced and delivered to six countries
6.
Supermarine Spitfire
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The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries before, during and after World War II. The Spitfire was built in many variants, using several wing configurations and it was also the only British fighter to be in continuous production throughout the war. The Spitfire continues to be popular among enthusiasts, about 54 remain airworthy, Spitfire units, however, had a lower attrition rate and a higher victory-to-loss ratio than those flying Hurricanes because of its higher performance. Spitfires in general were tasked with engaging Luftwaffe fighters during the Battle, much loved by its pilots, the Spitfire served in several roles, including interceptor, photo-reconnaissance, fighter-bomber and trainer, and it continued to serve in these roles until the 1950s. The Seafire was an adaptation of the Spitfire which served in the Fleet Air Arm from 1942 through to the mid-1950s. As a consequence of this, the Spitfires performance and capabilities improved over the course of its service life and this made its first flight in February 1934. Of the seven designs tendered to F7/30, the Gloster Gladiator biplane was accepted for service and this led to the Type 300, with retractable undercarriage and the wingspan reduced by 6 ft. This was submitted to the Air Ministry in July 1934, but was not accepted, on 3 January 1935, they formalised the contract with a new specification, F10/35, written around the aircraft. On 5 March 1936, the prototype took off on its first flight from Eastleigh Aerodrome, at the controls was Captain Joseph Mutt Summers, chief test pilot for Vickers, who is quoted as saying Dont touch anything on landing. This eight-minute flight came four months after the flight of the contemporary Hurricane. K5054 was fitted with a new propeller, and Summers flew the aircraft on 10 March 1936, after the fourth flight, a new engine was fitted, and Summers left the test-flying to his assistants, Jeffrey Quill and George Pickering. They soon discovered that the Spitfire was a good aircraft. The rudder was over-sensitive and the top speed was just 330 mph, here, Flight Lieutenant Humphrey Edwardes-Jones took over the prototype for the RAF. He had been orders to fly the aircraft and then to make his report to the Air Ministry on landing. Edwardes-Joness report was positive, his only request was that the Spitfire be equipped with a position indicator. A week later, on 3 June 1936, the Air Ministry placed an order for 310 Spitfires, before any formal report had been issued by the A&AEE, the British public first saw the Spitfire at the RAF Hendon air-display on Saturday 27 June 1936. The first and most immediate problem was that the main Supermarine factory at Woolston was already working at full capacity fulfilling orders for Walrus and Stranraer flying boats. In February 1936 the director of Vickers-Armstrongs, Sir Robert MacLean, guaranteed production of five aircraft a week, on 3 June 1936, the Air Ministry placed an order for 310 aircraft, for a price of £1,395,000
7.
History of the Israeli Air Force
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The History of the Israel Air Force begins in May 1948, shortly after the formation of the State of Israel. Following Israels declaration of independence on May 14, its national institutions transformed into the agencies of a state, and on May 26,1948. Beginning with a collection of light aircraft, the force soon transformed into a comprehensive fighting force. It has since participated in wars and numerous engagements, becoming what has been described as The mightiest air force in the Middle East. Preceded by the Sherut Avir, the air wing of the Haganah, at first, it was assembled from a hodge-podge collection of civilian aircraft commandeered or donated and converted to military use. A variety of obsolete and surplus ex-World War II combat aircraft were quickly sourced by various means – both legal and illegal – to supplement this fleet, some spitfires were ferried from Žatec base code-named Zebra where pilots also received preliminary flight training, while others were transported by sea. Creativity and resourcefulness were the foundations of Israeli military success in the air. Many of the first IAFs pilots in 1948 were foreign volunteers and World War II veterans, the IAFs humble beginnings made its first air victories particularly impressive and noteworthy. Similarly the Air Transport Command begun its existence as the Panamanian registered Lineos Aeros de Panama Society Anonyme or LAPSA acquired C-46, of the 607 IAF servicemen who served in the IAF during the War of Independence, over 414 of them were volunteers from overseas. Israels new fighter arm first went into action on May 29,1948, four newly arrived Avia S-199s, flown by Lou Lenart, Modi Alon, Ezer Weizman and Eddie Cohen, struck Egyptian forces near Isdud. Although damage was minimal, two aircraft were lost and Cohen killed, the attack achieved its goal and the Egyptians stopped. The Avias were back in action on May 30, attacking Jordanian forces near Tulkarem, after un-assembled planes were strafed on the ground on May 30th at Ekron airfield the fighters were moved to makeshift strip located around the current Herzliya Airport. The Israeli Air Force scored its first aerial victories on June 3 when Modi Alon, flying Avia D.112, the first dogfight against enemy fighters took place a few days later, on June 8, when Gideon Lichtaman shot down an Egyptian Spitfire. During these initial operations, the squadron operated with a few planes versus almost complete Arab theater Air supremacy and the airplanes were parked dispersed between the orange trees. As the war progressed, more and more aircraft were procured, including Boeing B-17s, Bristol Beaufighters, de Havilland Mosquitoes and P-51D Mustangs, although the IAF had never secured complete aerial supremacy, by the end of the war it had proven decisive in the air. The war also saw the IAF clash with Britains Royal Air Force, during the summer and autumn of 1948 RAF photo-reconnaissance De Havilland Mosquitos of No.13 Squadron RAF flew routine reconnaissance overflights over Israel. These high-altitude flights remained unchallenged until Israel acquired the Mustang, on November 20,1948 one such reconnaissance aircraft was spotted over the Galilee and was shot down by Wayne Peake, crashing in the Mediterranean off Ashdod. The IAF and RAF clashed again on January 7,1949, during Operation Horev, the Israeli Air Force played an important part in Operation Kadesh, Israels part in the 1956 Suez Crisis
8.
Israeli Air Force flight academy
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The Israeli Air Force Flight Academy trains aircrew to operate Israeli Air Force aircraft, qualifying fighter, helicopter and transport pilots as well as combat and transport navigators. The IAF flight course is considered one of the most prestigious courses in the IDF and it lasts for three years and is held largely in the Hatzerim Airbase near Beer Sheva. Graduates of the course receive the rank of lieutenant and a BA from the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, after their training, the graduates must undertake mandatory military service of nine years. On average, only one out of nine students completes the course successfully, the first IAF flight course was completed in March 1949 in Hatzor Airbase. The first four graduates, including Mordechai Hod and Danny Shapira, had received their training in Czechoslovakia, in May 194912 more graduates completed the second IAF flight course, which also took place mostly in Czechoslovakia. The first flight course held entirely in Israel was held at Camp Sirkin, near Petah Tikva, most of the flight instructors at the time were foreign and the official language of the course was English. The course ended on 10 August 1950 and had 13 pilot graduates, in order to prepare them as fighter pilots, in December 1950 a separate operational training squadron was established, flying the Supermarine Spitfire. Until 1955 the flight took place at the Sirkin Airbase. In April 1966 the IAF flight course was transferred more to Hatzerim Airbase. With the increasing need for pilots, in 1965 a helicopter flight school was established within the IAF flight school. Until then all the pilots were trained in Europe and the United States. In 2002 the structure of the course changed, it was extended from two years to three years, and included undergraduate academic studies. In addition, since 2002 the flight course graduates receive the rank of lieutenant, the selection process for IAF pilots can be traced to Ezer Weizman, widely considered the architect of the modern Israeli Air Force, and his aim of recruiting only the best for pilots. His reasoning was that the skill and bravery of the forces would be for naught if they could be attacked at will from the air. Those who meet these and other criteria are invited to participate in a six-day gibush, a selection phase involving physical, mental, as many as 50% percent of those who commence the gibush will be dropped from further consideration at its conclusion. Those who pass the gibush embark on a journey to earn their wings, which includes extensive flight training, infantry training, an officers course. The prospective pilots are evaluated constantly, and the vast majority of those who begin flight training do not make it through the full program and those expelled from the course will either remain in the air force in a non-flying capacity, or transfer to an army unit. While in flying school, future pilots are sorted and assigned to train on different types of aircraft, relatively few become fighter pilots, while the remainder learn to fly helicopters, transport aircraft, or train as navigators
9.
Unit 669
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669 is the Israel Defense Forces heliborne Combat Search & Rescue extraction unit, subordinate to the Special Air Forces Command of the Israeli Air Force. It is considered one of the IDFs premier elite units, Combat and support-staff jobs are multi-ethnic, and non-combat jobs are coed. Unit 669 was founded in 1974, in the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War and its initial mandate was to extract and provide initial medical treatment to downed pilots beyond enemy lines. The Units logo is a winged, slinking, green-eyed, black cat, the Units warriors are subsequently sometimes referred to as Cats or Flying Cats. Their training and selection lasts 18 months and is considered to be among the most physically and psychologically demanding of the IDF, a typical rescue team from 669 consists of a mix of 669 specialized warfighters and doctors. The unit itself is composed of three branches, Extraction, the extraction branch has a company of advanced and specialized infantrymen. The evacuation branch has a company of airborne doctors, paramedics and these medical personnel are critical to the mission by bringing advanced and specialized medical knowledge and experience to the injured, both in the field and in the air on the way to the hospital. The largest branch, the support group is composed of non-combat soldiers who assist in logistics for the unit. 669 is the IDFs primary rescue unit, the mandate of the unit is to rescue downed pilots and execute airborne medical evacuation of critical casualties. Due to the specialties and high proficiency of 669, the unit may also accept various other special operations missions depending on the needs of the Air Force. Unit 669 has been credited with hundreds of rescues, some of the more high profile missions are listed below. On September 15,1997, the Shayetet 13 Naval Commandos sent a team to conduct a raid in Lebanon. The team encountered an improvised explosive device and was ambushed by Hezbollah in what has subsequently called the Ansariya Ambush. 13 of the commandos were killed and 3 were injured. Unit 669 responded by sending a team to evacuate the injured commando team, for bravery and performance under fire the 669 team received a formal citation. In 2003,669 rescued ten Turkish seamen when they were caught in a storm in the Mediterranean Sea. Under these severe weather and sea conditions, the 669 soldiers rescued and evacuated the sailors from their ship at sea, during the Second Lebanon War and Operation Cast Lead, Unit 669 made dozens of high profile rescues of injured soldiers under enemy fire. During the 2014 military campaign Protective Edge,669 evacuated hundreds of casualties and these rescues, often under fire, earned the unit a formal citation award from the Chief of Staff of the IDF
10.
69 Squadron (Israel)
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The 69 Hammers Squadron is an Israeli Air Force squadron operating the F-15I Thunder out of Hatzerim. It was formed in July 1948 to operate three B-17 Flying Fortresses which the fledgling Israeli Air Force had acquired in the United States. The squadron flew the Flying Fortress, a type credited with propelling the IAF into the realm of aerial warfare. Disbanded in early 1957,69 Squadron reformed in 1969 to fly the F-4 Phantom II, the squadron often played a central role in IAF suppression of enemy air defences efforts and took part in repeated battles against Egyptian and Syrian air defence arrays. The squadron retired its Phantoms in 1994 but reformed shortly thereafter to operate the F-15I Thunder. Described as the long-range, heavy bombing element of Israeli air power,69 Squadron is reputed to have carried out Operation Orchard, despite an American arms embargo, Israeli acquisition agents managed to purchase four commercial B-17 Flying Fortresses in the US. By June 16 the story had made it to the press, ray Kurtz, a former B-17 navigator with 31 missions over Europe, was assigned command of the squadron, staffed by an international crew of World War II veterans who volunteered to fight for Israel. On July 15,1948, with fighting raging in Israel and Tel Aviv suffering from Royal Egyptian Air Force raids, still ill-equipped, the bombers were nevertheless tasked with bombing Egyptian targets en route. While Katz and Kurtz successfully bombed the Abdeen Palace, the two failed to locate their target and bombed Rafah instead, and all landed that evening at Tel Nof. The three aircraft were back in action at 06,30 on the next day, hitting the REAF base at El-Arish they had missed the previous night. As Tel-Nof was deemed vulnerable to Egyptian attacks, the aircraft landed at Ramat David. In following days, until a UN-brokered ceasefire came into effect on July 18, the Fortresses struck across three fronts, attacking Majdal, Damascus and Tulkarm. Raising the average load of an IAF sortie from 100 kg per sortie to 743 kg per sortie. Save for a mission by all three bombers in support of Operation Shoter on July 20, combat operations ceased until October 1948. These three months saw the unit reorganize and by August it had received its designation as 69 Squadron. With Bill Katz now in command, the spent the truce training, qualifying new airmen. Fighting resumed on October 15 with Operation Yoav, aimed with breaking the Egyptian siege of the Negev, over the next week the Hammers flew 47 sorties against Egyptian targets in and around Majdal, Gaza, El Arish, Al-Faluja, and Rafah. Missions were flown in either a trio or a pair to maximize defensive firepower, and sometimes with 101 Squadron escorts, in late October a number of sorties were also flown against Tarshiha, in the Upper Galilee, in support of Operation Hiram against Fawzi al-Qawuqjis Arab Liberation Army
Israel
Israeli Air Force
