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| 6 Israeli F-35 And 6 US F-15 To Joint Exercises |
Tel Aviv - Several Israeli F-35 stealth fighter jets and six F-15 fighter jets from the United States Air Force Central Command (US) were involved in a joint exercise at the Nevatim Air Force base in southern Israel. The Jerusalem Post reported that the joint maneuvers, which will start from Wednesday (4/1/2023) for the next few days, are likely to act as a bluff against Iran as the deadlock over Tehran's nuclear talks is underway.
In an interview with The Jerusalem Post, commanders of the 140th F-35 Squadron Lieutenant Colonel “M” and Captain “I” who were running the Israeli exercises, were neither very specific about the F-35's ability to target any particular country. However, they made it clear that they were ready and capable of striking anywhere the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) high command ordered them to go.
Furthermore, the goal of joint flight and attack simulation is to practice hitting targets in “deep” enemy territory, often a euphemism for Iran and other nations that do not share a direct border with Israel.
At a recent graduation ceremony for Air Force personnel, then-defense minister Benny Gantz said graduates should be prepared to potentially attack Iran in the next two to three years.
According to the Jerusalem Post report, six Israeli F-35s took off, but the IDF did not disclose the full number of aircraft involved in the joint maneuvers. Meanwhile, from the US, four out of six F-15 aircraft took off along with their initial flight pattern.
A Gulfstream G-500/G-550 aircraft was also involved to train intelligence gathering. In mid-December, IDF chief of staff Aviv Kohavi said that Israeli Air Force fighter jets striking Syria in recent years sometimes encountered 30-40 surface-to-air missiles, or even in one instance, up to 70 such missiles, without losing a single even plane.
Without going into specific operations, Colonel M emphasized the strengths of the F-35's stealth capabilities and that he personally encountered hazards on multiple missions during his career. Neither Lieutenant Colonel M nor Captain I could discuss the impact of removing the Russian S-300 anti-aircraft systems from Syria for use against Ukraine, but they said that the Israeli Air Force is training constantly for every scenario its fighter jets might encounter.
Lieutenant Colonel M did not want to give a timeframe for when the 11 Israeli F-35s, which were grounded on December 25 from a training flight to address potential defects found on similar American jets, would be returned to full service. The impression is that reviewing potential malfunctions can be complicated and time consuming. But Lieutenant Colonel M explained that the remaining available F-35s, of which Israel has three squadrons, are sufficient, along with other Israeli warplanes to complete whatever mission it needs to be assigned.