Israeli Air Victories

By Dave Lednicer

The Israel Defence Force/Air Force has been involved in six wars (1948 War of Independence, 1956 Sinai War, 1967 Six Day War, 1968-70 War of Attrition, 1973 Yom Kippur War and the 1982 Lebanon War) along with many years of skirmishing. In general, the details of IDF/AF operations and personalities have been shrouded in official secrecy. However, this veil has been partly lifted in the last ten years and details have begun to emerge. There are now a number of authoritative histories of the Mid East aerial conflict available. These include:

Spitfires Over Israel, a history of the air conflict in the 1948-49 Israeli War of Independence, by Brian Cull, Shlomo Aloni and David Nicolle, Grubb Street, 1994.

Wings Over Suez, a history of the air operations during the Sinai and Suez Wars of 1956, by Brian Cull, David Nicolle and Shlomo Aloni, Grubb Street, 1996.

Israel's Best Defense, an insider's history of the IDF/AF by Eliezer "Cheetah" Cohen, Orion Books, 1993.

No Margin For Error, another history of the IDF/AF by Ehud Yonay, Pantheon Books, 1993.

Israeli Fighter Aces, an account of the air force's top pilots, by Peter Mersky, Speciality Press, 1997.

Phoenix Over the Nile, a history of the Egyptian Air Force, by Lon Nordeen and David Nicolle, Smithsonian Institution Press, 1996.

G-Suit: Combat Reports From Israel's Air War, a collection of IDF/AF pilots' accounts of aerial actions, by Merav Halperin and Aharon Lapidot, Sphere Books, Ltd, 1990.

Fighters Over Israel, a slightly dated, but still useful history, by Lon Nordeen, Orion Books, 1990.

Air Warfare in the Missile Age, a general history with good coverage of the mideast conflict, by Lon Nordeen, Smithsonian Institution Press, 1996.

The Fighting Israeli Air Force, an early history of the IDF/AF, by Stanley Ulanoff and David Eshel, Arco Pulishing, Inc., 1985.

From these and other sources, the following lists have been prepared. One list covers all air-to-air victories claimed by the IDF/AF that pass historical scrutiny (there have been some that didn't) and the other is an accounting of air-to-air victories scored by individual pilots. The former list is believed to be fairly accurate and complete, but there are no guarentees. The latter list is believed to be complete up to June 5, 1967, the beginning of the Six Day War. After this point, there are many missing attributions and a lot of sketchy detail.

I welcome any further information that people might have available. Additionally, I would welcome any information on air-to-air victory claims made by pilots in the Arab air forces. I can be e-mailed at: dave@amiwest.com.

Israel Air Force Victory Totals By Date

Israel Air Force Victories