Review by Cmdr. Peter B. Mersky, USNR (Ret.)
No. 43 in Osprey’s open-ended Air Campaign series, this new soft-cover title is the latest dealing with what was something of an expected, yet surprising, addition to the long list of Arab-Israeli wars, beginning with the 1948 War of Independence following Israel’s declaring itself a state in May 1948. The fighting has never truly ended, as unfortunately indicated by the ongoing 18-month conflict over Gaza, with so many thousands of casualties and fatalities, military and civilian, on both sides. The most recent conflict began in October 2023, 50 years almost to the date of the Yom Kippur War, which is named for when it started on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, Oct. 6, that year’s Day of Atonement. The Yom Kippur War began when a combined alliance of Arab countries, led by Egypt and Syria, invaded Israel, which did “win.” Both sides were absolutely exhausted, but there was hope a way to a lasting peace could be found.
The war was fought on land as well as in the air, with Israel receiving support from the U.S. in the form of F-4 Phantoms and A-4 Skyhawks to replace those lost in combat or operational attrition during the war. Israel did have several squadrons of these aircraft, which had seen much combat in Vietnam, with the U.S. Air Force’s (USAF’s) F-4Es, with a nose-mounted cannon, and Navy A-4Es being the main variants now flown by the Israel Air Force (IAF).
The Skyhawks were occasionally brought to Israel by a shuttle schedule that involved American naval aviators ferrying them from the U.S. to Israel with stop-overs on Navy aircraft carriers. Their pilots would spend the night aboard ship, then launch the next day toward the Mediterranean to be escorted to their new owner’s base, often by IAF Mirages, their two cannon ports blackened from combat. Occasionally, the A-4s’ now-former operators could watch as their A-4s’ star-and-bar insignia was painted over with the IAF’s six-pointed Mogan David (Star of David), loaded with bombs and launched on a new mission for its new owner.
The author has written many books and magazine articles about the IAF, including “Arab-Israeli Air Wars 1947-82,” published by Osprey Combat Aircraft series (No. 23) in 2001, a general compilation of these individual wars. However, his latest book now focuses on this particular war with greater detail, with photos and maps (perhaps the most detailed of this type of graphic of specific operations during the 1973 war). Complimented by dramatic illustrations by Mads Bangso, the overall package shows the war in greater analysis and detail than I have seen, focusing more on individual operational factors than other titles that described the experiences and careers of individual pilots.
