The oldest squadron in the IAF was closed as part of the IDF's Momentum multi-year plan
By ANNA AHRONHEIMAn f-16 with the 117th squadron takes off from Ramat David airbase in northern Israel.(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
The Israeli Air Force has closed the 117th First Squadron, the country’s oldest squadron of F-16 fighter jets, 67 years after it was opened.The decision by IAF Commander Maj.-Gen. Amikam Norkin to close the Squadron, which flies F-16 C/D jets out of northern Israel’s Ramat David airbase, was made as part of the military’s plans to streamline and acquire new systems in its Momentum multi-year plan including more 5th generation aircraft.The 117th Squadron has taken part in every war in Israel’s history since it was established in 1953, as well as dozens of major operations, shooting down some 124 enemy aircraft.“This is a historic day in the Air Force, which is closing one of its most active and operational squadrons today,” said Norkin.Calling the squadron an “integral part of Air Force history,” Norkin said that while its closure is a “sad event, it embodies a streamlining move that is being led in the Air Force these days, as part of the deep understanding that we need to adapt to the current reality and economic streamlining now so that we can intensify in the coming years.”The squadron took part in the 1981 strike against Iraq’s nuclear reactor in Osirak, known as Operation Opera. That mission, Norkin said, “significantly contributed to the security of the State of Israel and changed the face of the Middle East.”The squadron also became the first in the world to shoot down an enemy plane with an F-16; the following year, it became the first in the world to shoot down a MiG-23.Based in northern Israel along with one other fighter squadron, it has “acted extensively in the northern arena against existing threats,” the military said in a statement.The announcement to close the squadron was made in May and since then it continued to train and take part in operations on all fronts until the day it was closed.“The spirit of the squadron, the human capital, the fallen of the squadron and their families are the ones that are engraved deep in our hearts and they are the ones that will preserve the squadron’s legacy in the pages of history. I’m proud of you 117 Squadron,” Norkin said.
