The Israeli Defense Force began in May 1948 when then-Prime Minister and Defense Minister David Ben-Gurion issued an order for the formation of the Defense Force following Israel’s Declaration of Independence. Since its declaration, Israel has been fighting numerous wars with Palestine, which is one of the world’s longest-continuous conflicts. The latest conflict began in the wake of Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel when assailants killed over 1,000 civilian Israelis — young and old alike — and non-civilians, which resulted in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declaring Israel to be in a state of war.
The attack by Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department, the European Union, and other countries, has prompted responses by countries worldwide that will undoubtedly add to already heated geopolitical tensions. Israeli forces are now mobilizing in the form of infantry and tanks, but perhaps the biggest advantage Israel has is air superiority.
According to U.S. Air Force magazine, one of the most important factors in modern warfare is air superiority, which is considered as one force “capable of conducting air operations without prohibitive interference.” This allows support to ground troops or to ships at sea from the air. In this current ongoing war, the Israeli Defense Force has air supremacy, meaning, “the opposing air force is incapable of effective interference.” Hamas’s anti-air countermeasures include rockets, missiles, and other man-portable shoulder-mounted launchers.
Israel’s fleet of fighter jets, attack helicopters, and more come from a handful of nations, namely the United States, and a few are produced in-house. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed active military aircraft data from FlightGlobal, an annual military aviation publication to identify the fighter jets and attack helicopters of the Israeli Air Force. We ordered the aircraft alphabetically and included supplemental data from the Military Factory regarding the type of aircraft, year introduced, classification, active number of aircraft, country of origin, manufacturer, top speed, and armament. (These are the largest air forces on Earth.)
The most widely used combat aircraft in the Israeli Air Force is the F-16I Sufa (Storm), with roughly 175 active aircraft in service. Introduced in 2004 as a lightweight multirole fighter jet manufactured by Lockheed Martin, Elbit Systems, and Israel Aerospace Industries, the Storm is capable of hitting speeds near Mach 2 and has a wide array of armaments, namely short-range air-to-air missiles. (These are The World’s 13 Fastest Fighter Jets.)
The IDF employs a range of combat helicopters as well, including the AH-64 Apache, AS565 Panther, and UH-60 Black Hawk. Most of these helicopters are manufactured by the United States except for the AS565 Panther, which is manufactured by Eurocopter in France. Each of these helicopters is outfitted with machine guns of varying calibers, and some are capable of holstering Hellfire missiles or Hydra rocket pods. (This is the most widely used combat helicopter in the world.)
Combat aircraft aside, much of the fleet consists of training aircraft that do not bear any armament. The T-6 Texan II and Leonardo M-346 Master are the most widely used. The T-6 Texan II traces its roots to the original T-6 Texan from World War II and was one of the most widely produced aircraft of that era.
Here are the fighter jets and attack helicopters of the Israeli Air Force.
AH-64 Apache
Year introduced: 1986
Type: Dedicated two-seat attack helicopter
Classification: Combat Helicopter
Active aircraft in Israeli Air Force: 48
Country of Origin: United States
Manufacturer(s): Hughes / Boeing / McDonnell Douglas
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