THE MYTH OF ISRAELI INVINCIBILITY. PART III

1967 – Six-Day War

           After the two wars (Arab-Israeli war between 1947 - 1949, and Sinai campaign – 1956), one can notice that the Israeli used certain trump-cards to achieve victory: air superiority which sometimes became air supremacy, combat experience gained during WWII, efficient intelligence services and operations planning based on blitzkrieg tactics (like Wehrmacht between 1939 and 1941). After 1960, it was clear that the experience gained during WWII were losing its importance, because the number of veterans decreased and the technology was changing. Although it was taken into consideration, this was no longer a trump card. That is why the Israeli leadership decided to pay more attention to the other trump cards.

          In order to achieve air superiority, Israelis bought modern and powerful fighters. The backbone of the air fleet consisted of 80 Dassault Mirage IIICJ, together with 100 Dassault Super Mystère B.2 and Dassault Mystère IVA[1]. Mirage IIICJ was considered one of the best fighters in the world at that time[2].

        On the secret front, Israeli government allocated huge funds in order to obtain sensitive information about the enemies throughout the Middle East. In the 1960s, Israeli intelligence agencies achieved amazing results. They succeeded to infill a spy right in the Syrian president’s inner circle (Ellie Cohen) and to steal a MiG-21 fighter jet from Iraq[3]. For this, they used a less known trump card: for such activities they recruited Jews who had been born and lived a period of their life in Arabic countries. They could pretend to be Arabs because they were able to speak Arabic fluently and knew very well local customs. They also had big amounts of money available.

          The security situation of Israel was not better than in 1956. A series of events led up to Six-Day War:

- November 1959: Israel government starts a project to bring water from the Sea of Galilee to the Negev desert;

- January 1964: Arab League decides to block Israeli project by diverting two rivers; Unified Arab Command is created to strengthen their military capabilities with the goal of destroying Israel; Palestine Liberation Organization is created;

- January 1965: Palestinian groups start to carry out attacks in Israel; lately, the attacks become more and more efficient;

- July 1966: Syrian forces bomb Israeli territory; dog fights between Israeli and Syrian planes;

- November 1966: Egypt and Syria sign mutual defense pact; Egypt and Jordania sign mutual defense pact; the attacks against Israeli territory intensify; Israeli forces fight back;

- January 1967: Syrian forces bomb Israeli territory; civilians living in the border area are evacuated;

- April 1967: Israeli planes down 6 Syrian MiG-21s;

- May 1967: Syrian Army perform 14 attacks against Israeli settlements; Israeli PM warns Syria; Egypt blocks Tiran strait;

- 14 May 1967: Egyptian HQ sends reinforcement in Sinai Peninsula and asks UN troops to withdraw from there;

- 17 May 1967: two Egyptian fighters fly over Israeli city Dimona;

- 19 May 1967: UN troops start to withdraw from Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip;

- 24 May – 04 June 1967: Egypt, Jordania, Syria, Iraq, Liban and Saudi Arabia amass troops near Israeli borders; in whole 230,000 military men and more than 1,200 tanks; Israel calls up its reservists;

- 26 May: US president warns Israel in an official meeting, and repeatedly thereafter, not to take pre-emptive actions.[4]

       The enemy troops, supported by tanks, deployed near the border were not the greatest danger for Israelis. The main threat was Arab air forces.  

        The most powerful military air force was the Egyptian one. Its backbone consisted of 120 MiG-21s, one of the most effective fighters at that time (its results in Vietnam had proved this). The Egyptians also had 60 MiG-19s which was older but still effective supersonic fighter and approximately 100 MiG-17s and MiG-15s. MiG-17, although obsolete, had demonstrated its combat effectiveness in Vietnam. Regarding the bombers, Egyptian Air Force had 25 Tu-16s and approximately 45 Il-28s[5]. The other states of the Arab Coalition also brought air assets (not all the available squadrons, just those designed to fight with Israelis):  

Planes	Iraq	Syria	Jordania	Liban
Fighters (fighter – bombers, interceptors and close support)	102	110	28	24
Bombers	21	-	-	-

           Israeli Air Force had, in whole, 250 fighters and 19 bombers. By comparing the figures, one can notice the huge differences between the two parties: more than 540 Arab fighters against 250 Israeli fighters, more than 90 Arab bombers against 19 Israeli bombers. Another matter was air defense. The Arabs had also more capabilities: the Egyptians operated de 32 SA-2 batteries (Soviet S-75)[6] while the Israelis operated 5 Hawk batteries. [7]

          Regarding the tanks, the Arabs also had more: 1,200 against 800. But these were only the tanks deployed near the borders. In whole, the Arabs had more than 2,500 tanks. There was quite no difference between the combat effectiveness of Israeli and Arab tanks.[8]

        As an assessment, the danger was very serious and imminent for Israel. Taking into consideration the difference between armed forces, the Arab Coalition was very motivated to launch an offensive.

          For Israeli HQ, there was just an option: to launch a preemptive attack and remove Arab air threat, using tactics based on blitzkrieg. This plan was not conceived in 1967, right before the war, but long ago. They expected such events. The plan consisted of sensitive intelligence collection, deception operations and devastating strikes. For deception, they used a smart strategy. Since 1965, Israeli fighter planes (approximately 40, simultaneously) had conducted daily training flights, on the same itinerary, keeping to the same schedule. The combat jets took off from Negev Desert bases, used to sweep to the west, out across the neutral Mediterranean Sea and got back. For the Egyptian radar operators this became a pattern.[9] But, finally, it was the reason for the utter surprise.

In order to develop the plan, Israeli intelligence agencies studied in depth enemy air forces, especially the Egyptian one. They collected detailed info about air bases, tactics, daily schedule, air defense batteries, uncovered areas for air defense missiles systems. On 5 June, at 0700 hrs, Israeli Air Force sent 200 fighters. Initially, Egyptian radar operators did not alert air bases and air defense units, because it seemed that Israelis flew according to the daily pattern. It was too late when they became aware of reality. There were two waves of attack. The specific time planned for attack was not randomly chosen. That was the breakfast time for all Egyptian pilots. First wave struck 11 Egyptian air bases, destroying 197 aircrafts and 8 radar stations, using rocket-assisted anti-runway warheads to disable runways. Second wave hit 14 other bases, destroying 107 additional aircrafts.[10] Israeli planes were able to evade the Soviet-made Egyptian aerial-defense missiles systems by flying very close to the ground. Air defense guns crews were taken by surprise and did not react in time.[11] Israelis also used electronic warfare systems which suppressed the activity of the Soviet-made SA-2 missiles. In this way, they created corridors within the Egyptian air defense, through which Israeli planes could pass in relative safety.[12] There was also another contributing factor to Israeli success. That morning, Egyptian air defense batteries received “no-fire” orders, because some officials were inspecting different sites in the targeted areas, travelling on board of transportation aircrafts[13]. For sure Israelis had access to this piece of information.

Basically, after a few hours, Egyptian Air Force no longer existed. The threat for Israel was removed.

       After that, dog fights began between Israeli jet fighters on the one hand and the Syrian, Iraqi and Jordanian jet fighters on the other hand. The study of the stolen Iraqi MiG-21 helped Israeli pilots. They succeeded to repel all the enemy attacks and downed 60 fighters. That day, Israel lost 46 planes, in operations against Egyptian air bases and during the dog fights.[14] In just one day, the Arab Coalition lost almost the entire air power.

       From that moment, Israeli armed forces enjoyed total freedom of action. Their planes performed continuous attacks against Arab ground forces and against objective in depth. The targets, consisting mainly in armored battle groups, were destroyed systematically. Nothing could stop them. Arab forces were not prepared for this and reacted chaotically. In Sinai, Egyptians lost 820 tanks and self-propelled guns, destroyed or captured, while on Golan Heights Syrians lost 1,116 tanks[15]. Israeli forces lost approximately 100 tanks[16]. Total Arab states’ losses: between 13,200 and 23,500 killed and more than 5,500 captured. Israeli casualties were between 776 and 983 killed.[17]

The outcome was foreseeable after 5^th of June. Air superiority, achieved due to a very elaborate operation, brought victory.

Why did the Arab Coalition not attack first? Probably they relied on US president repeated warnings to Israel, urging them to not conduct preemptive offensive actions.  

        Arab states and Israel signed separate, sequential ceasefire agreements brokered by the United Nations. The last of these agreements was signed on 11 June. Israel took control of vast territories: Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, Golan Heights and the West Bank.

          

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[1] The Eurasian Times, article 450+ Fighter Jets Destroyed In Surprise Attack! Amid Ukraine’s 34% Claims, Here’s How IAF Stunned The World With Its Air Raids, https://www.eurasiantimes.com/452-fighter-jets-bombed-in-5-hours/.

[2] Key.Aero, article Aircraft profile: Dassault Mirage III, https://www.key.aero/article/aircraft-profile-dassault-mirage-iii.

[3] British Modern Military History Society, article One Of Our Aircraft is Stolen…., https://bmmhs.org/one-of-our-aircraft-is-stolen/.

[4] Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America, section Events leading up to Six-Day War, https://www.sixdaywar.org/timelines/.

[5] The Eurasian Times, article 450+ Fighter Jets Destroyed In Surprise Attack! Amid Ukraine’s 34% Claims, Here’s How IAF Stunned The World With Its Air Raids, https://www.eurasiantimes.com/452-fighter-jets-bombed-in-5-hours/.

[6] The word “battery” provided by sources is not right. SA-2 systems were organized in battalions, each of them consisting in a couple of batteries: combat (launchers), command and support. For sure, Egyptians had 32 battalions.

[7] King’s College London, article A History of the Syrian Air Force 1947-1967, https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/studentTheses/a-history-of-the-syrian-air-force-1947-1967/.

[8] Battle Front, article The Tanks of Fate of a Nation, https://www.battlefront-community.com/article/the-tanks-of-fate-of-a-nation/.

[9] Warfare History Network, article The Sinai Air Strike: June 5, 1967, https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/the-sinai-air-strike-june-5-1967/.

[10] The Eurasian Times, article 450+ Fighter Jets Destroyed In Surprise Attack! Amid Ukraine’s 34% Claims, Here’s How IAF Stunned The World With Its Air Raids, https://www.eurasiantimes.com/452-fighter-jets-bombed-in-5-hours/.

[11] National Air and Space Museum, section Rescue Mission, https://airandspace.si.edu/air-and-space-quarterly/issue-9/rescue-mission.

[12] Wilson Center, section Assessing the Damage: the June 1967 Czech Delegation to Egypt, https://www.wilsoncenter.org/publication/assessing-the-damage-the-june-1967-czech-delegation-to-egypt#:~:text=The%20Czechoslovaks'%20close%20acquaintance%20with%20the%20Egyptian,but%20also%20by%20deploying%20sophisticated%20electronic%20warfare.

[13] JewishLink, article June 5, 1967: Israel Destroys Most of the Egyptian Air Force, https://jewishlink.news/june-5-1967-israel-destroys-most-of-the-egyptian-air-force/.

[14] Jewish Virtual Library, section Israel Air Force: In the Six-Day War, https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/israel-air-force-in-the-six-day-war.

[15] GlobalSecurity.org, article T-55 - Combat Experience, https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/russia/t-55-combat.htm.   

[16] Office of the Historian, section Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XIX, Arab-Israeli Crisis and War, 1967, https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1964-68v19/d414#:~:text=Israel%20emerged%20from%20the%20war,450%20jet%20pilots%20were%20killed.

[17] Military History Now, article The Six Day War — Nine Facts About The 1967 Arab-Israeli Conflict, https://militaryhistorynow.com/2015/05/28/fast-and-furious-nine-amazing-facts-about-the-six-day-war/. 

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