Israeli Air Force

In brief

Israel's air arm and the service that carried the air campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon, and the air-defence formation that intercepts what is fired from both.

Scope: Structure, role, lineage and links. 1 subordinate record published.
Subordination: Subordination confirmed
Sources: 3 on the record
Record state: Partial

Broad area of activity: Israeli airspace and the Levant fronts, described at strategic scale only
Notable history: The air force carried the air campaign in Gaza from October 2023, the strike campaign against Hezbollah in 2024 and the strikes across Lebanon in the 2026 war, and its air-defence array intercepted rockets, drones and missiles from Gaza and Lebanon throughout.
Strengths: Sustained strike capacity on the Gaza and Lebanon fronts at the same time, demonstrated from 2023 to 2026, and an air-defence array that has intercepted rockets, drones and missiles fired from both.
Limitations: Its campaigns are reported by the IDF in bundled target counts and by the other side in casualty counts, so they are hard to measure from outside; and air power has not removed Hezbollah's or Hamas's arms, which every arrangement leaves to disarmament. Nothing here describes bases, numbers, sortie rates or targeting.

Subordinate formations

Israeli Air Defense ArrayCommand

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Documented equipment

F-35I Adir · Documented F-15 Eagle (Gulf and Israeli variants) · Documented F-16AM/BM · Documented

Campaigns

Campaigns naming this organisation as a participant. The campaign record owns the relationship and grades it; this list is computed.

Israel's Gaza war Supporting force · Since 7 October 2023 · high confidence · as of 2026-10
The air campaign preceded the ground manoeuvre and strikes have continued under the October 2025 ceasefire. No strike-target detail is carried.
The Lebanon front, 2023–2024 Supporting force · 8 October 2023 – 27 November 2024 · high confidence · as of 2024-11
Northern Arrows opened as an air campaign across Lebanon on 23 September 2024. No strike-target detail is carried.
The 2026 Lebanon war Supporting force · Since 2 March 2026 · high confidence · as of 2026-06
The UN observed or detected 2,418 air strikes between 21 February and 20 June 2026 (S/2026/566). No strike-target detail is carried.

Quick actions

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System access

Where this record connects into the rest of Vigil. Each row is here because this organisation actually reaches it.

Equipment catalogue 3 linked systems — family-level records, never quantities Campaigns 3 campaigns name this organisation as a participant A mutually declared adversarial relationship since 1979, in open armed conflict since 2026. A standing arrangement this organisation embodies

Sensitivity: Public · structural Confidence: Moderate Sources: Israel Defense Forces — Spokesperson's Unit announcements ↗ · UN Security Council resolutions, Secretary-General reports and meeting records (Levant)↗ · Established historical record Methodology Corrections

Assessed as of — 2026-09 Last reviewed — 2026-09-09

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