Israel may seek to procure a squadron of used USAF F-15s to bridge the anticipated gap until it receives its first F-35 strike fighters. This is one of the options, including upgrades to its existing F-15s and F-16s, that the Israeli defense ministry is considering to keep its combat aircraft inventory at 460 airframes until the F-35 enters its inventory, reports UPI. Though Israel inked a $2.75 billion deal with the United States for 20 F-35s last October—with an eye toward an eventual 75—delays in the overall F-35 program may push back the first Israeli deliveries by several years to as late as 2018. “Qualitative advantage has been a main element of Israeli’s security concept,” Yiftah Shapir, a security analyst at Tel Aviv University told UPI, in explaining why the defense ministry would have interest in the used USAF F-15s.
Golden Dome Details Begin to Emerge
Dec. 7, 2025
The Golden Dome air and missile defense shield to protect the United States will have some “operational capability” in 2028, the program’s leader said Dec. 6 at the Reagan National Defense Forum.
