Aviation - Israel: books - history and aircraft

The Israeli Airforce 1947-1960 : An Illustrated History

The writing of this book, the first in-depth and fully detailed research about the early years of the Chel Ha'avir - from the light-plane days to the supersonic fighters received roughly ten years later - is the culmination of a long research period by the author. Research that was made harder by the tight - but understandable and respected - security measures involving Israel's Forces.
An exceptional source of information has been the help provided by many Chel Ha'Avir veterans who fought in the early days during 1948/1949, and those who helped establish a viable air force in 1949-1956 in spite of tight budgets, obsolescent equipment and lack of experience, and also those who fought in Sinai in late 1956, establishing the seeds for its future role as the airborne shield of Israel.

As the reader will discover, the beginnings were extremely hard, and the Chel Ha'Avir had to face unfriendly attitudes from both the United States and the United Kingdom, which took place while many people - civilian and military - were dying in the newborn Hebrew state. But in observing that official policies do not always reflect the citizenship's feelings, most of the colorful band of foreign volunteers that helped the Chel Ha'avir - and the other defense forces - to resist, fight back and win, came from those countries. These foreign volunteers, mostly with combat experience in World War II, provided a core in which many highly talented young Israelis learned fast.

Jezreel Valley Mysteres : The Mystere Iva in Israeli Air Force Service, Squadron 109, 1956-1968

Israel acquired sixty-one Dassault Mystere IVA combat aircraft from France that were delivered to the Israeli Air Force from April to September 1956 and were issued to two units: Squadron 101 at Hatzor, in the south, and Squadron 109 at Ramat David, in the north.
From 1956 until 1959, and to a lesser extent from 1959 until 1962, the Mystere was the ILAF's cutting-edge interceptor.

From 1959, the Mystere's main mission shifted from air-to-air to air-to-ground, as more modern interceptors - Super Mystere from 1959 and Mirage from 1962 - entered Israeli Air Force service. At the same time, the Israeli Air Force initiated an effort to introduce an attack aircraft to succeed the Mystere.
The Squadron 109 Mystere era therefore covered mostly air-to-air from 1956 until 1962 and mostly air-to-ground from 1962 until 1968.

Vultures Over Israel - The Vautour in Israeli Service: Squadron 110 1957-1971

The French Vautour was designed to serve as an attack aircraft, bomber and nightfighter. Israel purchased all three versions and was the only nation to operate all three types. Sqdn.110 recon Vautours collected imagery crucial for IAF Operation Focus, the pre-emptive strike that opened the June 1967 Six Day War. It was during this war that Sqdn. 110 attack Vautours spearheaded the IAF air superiority offensive.
Well illustrated, this work gives a detailed account on the aircraft and its use in the IAF.

Israeli A-4 Skyhawk Units in Combat (Osprey)

The light and agile A-4 Skyhawk was the first modern American jet to be offered to the Israeli Air Force, marking the point where the US took over from France as Israel's chief military supplier. Deliveries began too late for the A-4 to fight in the Six-Day War, but it soon formed the backbone of the IAF's ground-attack force.
From 1969 to 1970 it flew endless sorties against Egyptian forces in the War of Attrition. Then, during the Yom Kippur War, five squadrons of A-4s saw combat and 50 planes were lost as they battled against the Arab armored onslaught.
Using previously unpublished first-hand accounts and rare photography from the IAF archives and pilots' private collections, Shlomo Aloni tells the definitive history of the IAF's A-4 squadrons, including the story of Ezra "BABAN" Dotan who became an ace with an unique double-kill of MiG17s.

Contents
1) Ahit Origins
2) Attrition War
3) Between Wars
4) Yom Kippur War Day 1 to Day 3
5) Yom Kippur War Day 4 to Day 8
6) Yom Kippur War Day 9 to Day 19
7) Syria and Lebanon Again
Appendices

Israeli F-15 Eagle Units in Combat (Osprey)

Post-Yom Kippur War, Israel purchased the F-15 Eagle, the then world's best air-to-air fighter, in an effort to prevent another surprise attack from the air. For the first time in its history the IDF/AF operated a fighter that was a full generation ahead of opposing interceptors in the region.
The first 'kill' F-15 Baz (Buzzard) arrived in Israel in 1976 and soon proved its worth in combat. Israeli Baz pilots were credited with 12.5 kills between 1979 and 1981, with 33 victories following during the June 1982 Lebanon War. Despite substantial combat, no Israeli F-15 has ever been lost to enemy action.
In the 1990s the US government supplied the IDF/AF with the F-15I Ra'am (Thunder) to fulfill the long-range surface-to-surface missile mission post-Desert Storm. From A to I, the extremely capable, and combat-tested, Israeli F-15 force will continue to deter potential enemies well into the foreseeable future.

This book examines the history and development of these units.

Contents: Baz Origins - Close and Far - Lebanon War - From Lebanon to Iraq - Reshaping Deterrence - Baz Upgrade.
Appendices: Israeli F-15 Aces - Israeli F-15 kills - Colour Profiles.