| 161 Squadron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1980 - Today |
| Country | Israel |
| Branch | Israeli Air Force |
| Garrison/HQ | Palmahim airbase |
| Nickname(s) | Black Snake |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Elbit Hermes 450 | |
The 161 Squadron of the Israeli Air Force, also known as the Black SnakeSquadron, operates Elbit Hermes 450 UAVs. It is based at Palmachim airbase. [1]
It was previously an MD 500 Defender and then an AH-1E/F Cobra helicopter squadron under the name Southern Cobra Squadron.
On Saturday, October 7, 2023, the day of the Hamas surprise attack, the squadron was on alert. [2] At 06:30 the attack began, according to an investigation by Yediot Ahronoth, shortly after that at 06:37 the second squadron launched as armed "Zik" type UAVs, in response to "red color" calls. [2]
Due to the massive damage to the ability Target intelligence, command and control of the IDF by destroying the division headquarters and the brigade headquarters at the Raim base, and other bases in the area, there were almost no targeting factors that could direct the aircraft. In the first hours of the attack, the operators were forced to improvise and act independently, deciding on their own attack targets, with almost no orders, and without them or the central command of the Israeli Air Force understanding the full picture. The officer level in the field initiated steps on its own, in the squadron they did not wait for an orderly order and ordered three more armed Ziks to take off and enter the battle. [2]
By the end of the first day, the squadron had carried out 110 attacks on about a thousand targets, most of them inside Israel. [2]
The squadron was them deployed to the north and launched strikes inside Lebanon during the Israel Hezbollah conflict. [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.
Tel Nof Airbase, also known as Air Force Base 8, is the oldest and main base of the Israeli Air Force (IAF) located 5 km south of Rehovot, Israel. Tel Nof houses two strike fighter, two helicopter and a UAV squadron. Also located on the base are the Flight Test Center Manat and several special units of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), among others Unit 669 and the Paratroopers Brigade training center and its headquarters.
Aluf Mordechai (Motti) Hod was the Commander of the Israeli Air Force during the 1967 Six-Day War.
Ramon Airbase is an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base in the Negev desert, 50 km south of Beersheba and 20 km northwest of the town Mitzpe Ramon. The base and the town got their names from the huge "erosion crater" Makhtesh Ramon south of it. The base is also titled Kanaf 25, it was formerly known as Matred.
Palmachim Airbase is an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base and spaceport, which the IAF and the Israel Space Agency (ISA) operate jointly. It is located west of the city of Yavne on the Mediterranean coast, 12 km south of the Gush Dan metropolitan area with Tel Aviv, named after the Kibbutz Palmachim north of it.
Operation Mole Cricket 19 was a suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD) campaign launched by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) against Syrian targets on June 9, 1982, at the outset of the 1982 Lebanon War. The operation was the first time in history that a Western-equipped air force successfully destroyed a Soviet-built surface-to-air missile (SAM) network. It also became one of the biggest air battles since World War II, and the biggest since the Korean War. The result was a decisive Israeli victory, leading to the colloquial name the "Bekaa Valley Turkey Shoot".
The air battle of Mansoura was an air battle that took place in 1973 during the Yom Kippur War between the Egyptian Air Force (EAF) and the Israeli Air Force (IAF) near the town of El Mansoura, in the Nile Delta.
Bir Gifgafa is an airfield in the Sinai, 90 km east of the Suez Canal. During the 1960s and 1970s it played a significant role in Arab–Israeli wars, at different times serving both Egypt and Israel.
115 Squadron, also known as the Flying Dragon or Red Squadron, is the Israeli Air Force's aggressor squadron. Based at Ovda, it is the sole IAF squadron to operate fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and ground-based assets.
Giora Romm was an Israeli military officer who served as deputy commander of the Israeli Air Force (IAF), Israel's military attaché in the United States and as director of the Civil Aviation Authority of Israel. Romm was the IAF's first jet ace, scoring five kills during the 1967 Six-Day War. In 1969, during the War of Attrition, Romm was shot down and spent several months in Egyptian captivity. He commanded the IAF's 115 Squadron through the intensive fighting of the 1973 Yom Kippur War and participated in Operation Wooden Leg, the 1985 raid against PLO headquarters in Tunisia.
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.
210 "White Eagle" Squadron of the Israeli Air Force is an IAI Eitan squadron based at Tel Nof Airbase.
Operation Tarnegol was an Israeli Air Force operation carried out on the eve of the 1956 Suez Crisis. It witnessed an Israeli Gloster Meteor NF.13 intercept and destroy an Egyptian Ilyushin Il-14 carrying high-ranking members of the Egyptian General Staff en route from Syria to Egypt.
The 166 Squadron of the Israeli Air Force, also known as the Fire Birds Squadron, is an Elbit Hermes 900 squadron based at Palmachim Airbase.
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 History of the Israel Air Force begins in May 1948, shortly after the formation of the State of Israel. Following Israel's declaration of independence on May 14, its pre-state national institutions transformed into the agencies of a state, and on May 26, 1948, the Israeli Air Force was formed. Beginning with a small collection of light aircraft, the force soon transformed into a comprehensive fighting force. It has since participated in several wars and numerous engagements, becoming what has been described as "The mightiest air force in the Middle East".
Ran Goren is a retired fighter pilot and Major General of the IDF, former Deputy Commander of the Air Force and Head of the Manpower Directorate.
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| Helicopter squadrons | ||
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| Unmanned | ||
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| Inactive | ||
| Notable | ||
| Historical |
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