| 105 Squadron | |
|---|---|
 The Scorpion Squadron | |
| Active | December 1950-present |
| Country |  Israel |
| Branch |  Israeli Air Force |
| Role | Air Defence |
| Garrison/HQ | Ramat David Airbase |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Fighter | F-16D |
The 105 Squadron of the Israeli Air Force, also known as The Scorpion, operates F-16Ds from Ramat David Airbase. [1]
The squadron was founded in December 1950 as a Spitfire squadron. It has since operated the P-51 Mustang, Dassault Super Mystere, IAI Sa'ar, and the F-4 Phantom II.
The fifth and last Israeli Air Force F-4E Kurnass squadron, 105 was activated at Hatzor on March 31, 1975, under the command of Shmuel Gordon. The Scorpion received its mounts under Peace Echo V deliveries, flying the IAF's newest aircraft and latest blocks, and was soon the first IAF Squadron to introduce the AGM-78 Purple Fist anti-radiation missile. It flew its first operational bombing mission, against a PLO base in Lebanon, in September 1977. [2]
The squadron flew 335 sorties during the 1982 Lebanon War, primarily in the SEAD and close air support roles, and participated in operation Mole Cricket 19. The squadron scored the war's sole F-4E kill, when Ben-Ami Peri and David Oakman shot down a Syrian Air Force MiG-21 on June 11. 105 Squadron Phantoms were distinguished by a red arrow along both sides of their fuselage, initially solid red but later white with red outlines. [2]
The squadron was disbanded in 1987 following IAF budget cuts. [2]
The squadron won the 2009 "Skewer" competition. [3]
The Israeli Air Force operates as the aerial and space warfare branch of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence. As of April 2022, Aluf Tomer Bar has been serving as the Air Force commander.
The 69 "Hammers" Squadron is an Israeli Air Force squadron operating the F-15I Thunder out of Hatzerim. It was formed in July 1948 to operate three B-17 Flying Fortresses which the fledgling Israeli Air Force had acquired in the United States. The squadron flew the Flying Fortress, an aircraft credited with propelling the IAF into the realm of modern aerial warfare, during both the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and 1956 Suez Crisis. Disbanded in early 1957, 69 Squadron reformed in 1969 to fly the F-4 Phantom II.
Hatzor Airbase, also titled Kanaf 4 is an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base, located in central Israel near kibbutz Hatzor after which it is named. However, there have been no fighter jets stationed there since 2021, only patrol aircraft, UAVs and defense missiles. A Combined Operations Center for the US military and Israel has also been built there.
Ramat David Airbase is an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base located 20 km southeast of Haifa in the Northern District of Israel, close to kibbutz Ramat David in the Jezreel Valley. It is the northernmost IAF base in Israel with fighter jets, UAVs and helicopters based on it. There is an ongoing debate about whether Ramat David should be converted into an international airport.
Hatzerim Airbase is an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base on the northern edge of the Negev desert in the Southern District of Israel, 6 km west of Beersheba, near kibbutz Hatzerim. Apart from operational fighter jets, it houses the IAF Flight Academy, the IAF Aerobatic Team and the IAF Museum.
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The 1973 Syrian General Staff Headquarters Raid was an aerial strike carried out by the Israeli Air Force on October 9, 1973, the fourth day of the Yom Kippur War. Following a strike by Syrian surface-to-surface missiles against settlements and installations in northern Israel, seven F-4 Phantom IIs from 119 Squadron attacked the Syrian General Staff Headquarters (GHQ) and adjacent buildings in downtown Damascus.
147 Squadron, often referred to as the Flying Ibex or Goring Ram squadron, is a former unit of the Israeli Air Force. Fielding IAF Flight Academy aircraft, it flew the Boeing-Stearman Kaydet during the 1956 Suez Crisis and the Fouga Magister during the 1967 Six-Day War, in the course of which it suffered six fatalities. Between 1978 and 1986 it flew the A-4 Skyhawk.
The Galilee Squadron was an aerial unit established by the Yeshuv during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War to assist the Jewish war effort in northern Palestine. Initially a part of the Sherut Avir, the aerial arm of the Haganah, it was absorbed into the fledgling Israeli Air Force (IAF) upon the latter's formation on 28 May 1948. The unit served throughout the war, following which it was amalgamated with several other units to form the IAF's 100 Squadron.
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Rami Harpaz was a colonel in the Israel Defence Forces and a prisoner of war during the War of Attrition. Harpaz served as a fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force (IAF) and spent three and a half years in an Egyptian prison. Following his release, he returned to the Air Force, and came to command the IAF base at Ramat David.
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