Free Republic

Israeli forces released footage of the "Iron Sting" system launching a mortar bomb to take out a rocket launcher in its first-ever use in an operation on Sunday. The Iron Sting, described as "an innovative and accurate mortar bomb," is one of a variety of weapons being used to thwart dozens of terrorists, the Israeli Air Force posted on X, along with video it said showed the 120mm mortar decimating an enemy rocket launcher. The Israeli army used the weapons system in conjunction with the Israeli Air Force. The weapons system uses a "precise, laser and GPS guided mortar munition"...

Sunday’s cabinet decision to approve the acquisition of 17 F-35s for the Israel Air Force is a belated, necessary result to the partial decision the previous government made nearly three years ago. Then, only a partial equipping was approved in an unusual step that would have left the IAF at the end of the acquisition process with a squadron and a half. It would have been an operational hybrid, which would likely not allow long-term planning and conducting of missions on an ongoing basis. According to the decision, the IAF will have a full complement of two squadrons by 2021...

Pictures emerge showing destruction caused to buildings by airstrikes Syria pledges to retaliate against Israel 'in its own time and way'Threats follow two raids by Israel on Syria in the past three daysVideo footage showed dramatic explosions over Damascus skylineIsrael says it was targeting Iranian-made missiles on the way to Hezbollah Bulldozers are clearing away rubble from buildings razed to the ground by Israeli airstrikes near Damascus, as Syria pledges retaliation for the 'declaration of war'.Pictures have emerged from Syria showing the damage caused to buildings, including some forming part of a chicken farm, by an attack in Al-Hama -...

For the third time in the last six months the Israeli Air Force has hosted foreign fighter pilots for tactical training. Israeli fighter pilots are considered the best trained in the world, and Israel maintains a special training program, complete with pilots trained and equipped to operate as likely foes would, to train their own pilots. The latest nation to send fighters and pilots for training is Poland, flying F-16s in for that purpose. Previously, Italy had sent Typhoons and Tornados and Greece F-16s. The Israeli training center is based on the one pioneered by the U.S. Air Force Red...

Despite deepening defense budget cuts, the Israeli air force is reported to be moving toward ordering a second squadron of 20 F-35 stealth fighters from Lockheed Martin, possibly as early as this year. The first 20 Joint Strike Fighters were ordered in October 2010 at a cost of $2.75 billion. Israel ultimately wants to acquire 75 F-35s, to replace Lockheed Martin's F-16I and Boeing's F-15I to form the spearhead of its strategic air power, particularly in terms of long-range strikes against Iran. But the cost in the current budgetary climate is likely to be prohibitive, particularly as Israel's military is...

Facing the worst barrage of rockets from Palestinian militants since 2009, Israel is getting a boost from a new interceptor system that destroys missiles in midair before they fall on population centers. The "Iron Dome" missile system has provided an added layer of security for Israel's homeland by downing dozens of rockets in the past four days, buying more time for the country's leaders to confront militants with less citizen pressure to stem hostilities. The system underlines Israel's shifting doctrine of emphasizing defense capabilities in addition to its offensive firepower, and offers a preview of how Israel will handle any...

Polish fighter jets arrived in Israel this week for joint training with the Israel Air Force in the Negev. The Polish dispatched a number of F-16 fighter jets which have been holding maneuvers alongside IAF F-16 and F-15s. The maneuvers are based in the Uvda Air Force Base near Eilat. "We learn from one another and it helps us learn from the Poles, how they fly and their doctrines," a senior IAF officer said Wednesday. Gen. Broni Lech Majewski, commander of the Polish Air Force, arrived in Israel on Monday to oversee the drill. This is the first time that...

Palestinian terrorists fired more than 160 rockets at dozens of civilian targets from Friday through Sunday, injuring three Israeli citizens and causing extensive damage. The escalated rocket attacks were in apparent retaliation for an Israeli strike against one of the major commanders of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), which was planning terrorist attacks by infiltrating through the Sinai. The commander, Zuhair al-Qaissi, also planned and carried out attacks through the Sinai last August that killed eight Israelis. Three other terrorists were killed in the strike which precipitated a blizzard of rocket fire from the PRC that struck several towns in...

The Israel Air Force’s Iron Dome rocket-defense system intercepted 27 rockets fired from the Gaza Strip over the weekend, raising the interception rate from 75 percent last year to over 90%. Israel currently has three Iron Dome batteries in operation – in Ashkelon, Ashdod and Beersheba – and plans to deploy the fourth in the coming months. Its plan is to deploy a total of nine batteries by mid-2013. The battery in Ashdod intercepted 11 rockets out of 13 fired into the city; the battery in Ashkelon intercepted one rocket and purposely did not intercept four others since they were...

Israel seems determined to acquire a fleet of Lockheed Martin's costly F-35 stealth fighters despite the plethora of problems plaguing the development of the fifth-generation jet. A new assessment of Israel's defense challenges indicates why: In the face of improving air defenses in Iran and Syria, Israel's main state adversaries in the Middle East, air superiority is vital in maintaining the Jewish state's qualitative military edge. "Equipping the Israeli air force with the F-35 has strategic importance in terms of deterring the enemy from starting a war and in terms of maintaining Israel's qualitative advantage in the arena," the assessment...

Israel is upgrading its thirty 1970s vintage F-15 fighters so that they can use JDAM and other smart bombs, and continue flying for another decade. Israel has 107 F-15s, and all but the 30 oldest ones can already use smart bombs. This additional upgrade effort is partly in response to the growing number of delays in delivering the new F-35. Moreover, the 31 ton F-15A/B/C/D/Is that Israel uses have larger carrying capacity (up to 11 tons, compared to four tons) and range than the 350 F-16s. While the F-16s are Israel's principal combat aircraft, the larger F-15s can still defeat...

The Israeli air force is to enhance an upgrade programme to its Boeing F-15 "Baz" strike aircraft to include its oldest A/B-model aircraft. One prototype has already been completed and will serve to accelerate the series upgrade. "We are confident that after the upgrade is complete, all the Baz fleet will be capable of performing long-range strikes in the next 10 years," an air force source says. Israel's F-15C/Ds have been upgraded within recent years, but the service had not planned to invest in modernising its earlier A/Bs. However, a more comprehensive upgrade is now aimed at enabling the older...

The IDF’s "Magic Wand" (Sharvit Kesamim) system for intercepting intermediate-range rockets was successfully tested last week, the BaMachane military magazine reports in its latest issue. The tests took place in southern Israel last week and were conducted by the Defense Ministry and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems under the attack conditions that Israel expects. At the end of the experiments it was estimated that the system will become operational within several years. Magic Wand is intended to deal with a wide range of threats, and is essentially designed to fill a gap between the Iron Dome system for short-range missiles, such...

-- Despite rebuffing U.S. calls for a partial settlement freeze on the occupied Palestinian territories, Israel is still hoping to acquire another 20 U.S.-built F-35 fighter jets free of charge. The United States offered Israel a package of incentives last month in a bid to sway Tel Aviv to halt a contentious development project in the West Bank for 90 days. The package included the supply of another 20 radar-evading Joint Strike Fighter jets, estimated at $3 billion. It also included diplomatic promises of blocking any initiative at the U.N. Security Council critical of Israel and the signing of a...

The "Eitan" Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Squadron opening ceremony took place on the Tel-Nof IAF base yesterday, December 20th 2010. The "Eitan" UAV was developed by the IAF and the Israel's Homeland Security Industry, and was officially integrated by the IAF in February 2010. This new development signifies yet another breakthrough in the field of unmanned aerial vehicles for the IAF, and constitutes an improvement in operational capabilities responding to threats, be they near or far, routine or emergent. The inauguration of the new squadron is yet another step for the new system in becoming operational. The Tel-Nof IAF Base...

An Israeli warplane has shot down a "suspicious object" flying over the southern part of the Dead Sea, the military said, adding that the intruder appeared to have been a balloon. The country's main nuclear reactor is about 30 kilometres from the Dead Sea, at Dimona in the Negev desert. "Air force planes were scrambled after a suspicious object was seen," a military spokeswoman told AFP yesterday. "It was shot down." She did not elaborate. Local news site Ynet said one of the planes fired a missile at the object "which was hovering close to the nuclear research institute at...

Israel is still interested in an additional 20 stealth F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets which the US promised Israel in exchange for renewing the settlement construction freeze, Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Oren said Wednesday in an interview with Oren said the deal fell apart because Palestinians refused to accept a settlement freeze that didn't include Jerusalem. Nevertheless, he said Israel still expects to acquire the additional Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, on top of 20 already ordered. The jets "are very much on the table," he said.

The Israeli Air Force and Defense Ministry have instructed their military attachés stationed throughout the world to begin conducting a survey of firefighting aircraft that Israel is considering purchasing following the Carmel Forest fires. One of the leading candidates is the Bombardier 415 – also known as the Canadair CL-415 – which is made in Canada and is believed to be suitable for Israel since it has the ability to scoop up water from the sea.

Israel is in talks with the United States to acquire an additional 20 Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets, a senior Israeli defense official said on Wednesday. Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi said Israel would welcome another 20 fighter jets on the heels of a deal signed in October to buy about 20 of the radar-evading jets at a cost of about $96 million per aircraft. "As I understand -- and that's the latest information I have on this issue -- it's still under negotiation between the Israeli government and the administration," he said, speaking at a news conference alongside Admiral...

Israel has received the first of the thousand new U.S. 250 pound (actually 285/129 kg) Small Diameter Bomb (SDB, or GBU-39) it ordered earlier this year. Apparently these weapons arrived quickly, and it's believed that some SDBs have already been used during Israeli air raids on Gaza. Earlier, the Israeli had received a few SDBs for evaluation, and some of these were apparently dropped as well. The SDB is not cheap, Israel paid about $77,000 for each one. It was believed that Israel wanted this weapon not just for its precision, and low explosive (17 kg/38 pounds) power, but also...