Israel's Best Defense: The First Full Story of the Israeli Air Force

Founded during the 1947-1949 War of Independence, the Israeli Air Force earned its reputation for combat efficiency during the 1956 Sinai Campaign and the 1967 Six-Day War. These victories convinced the Israelis that they possessed an invincible military whose air arm guaranteed ``clean skies'' and provided a far-reaching force to thwart surprise attacks. As the author of this popular history reveals, the 1973 Yom Kippur War shattered this delusion, as Egyptian airplanes achieved the first strike, catching the IAF unprepared. Cohen chronicles the IAF's successes and misfires, introduces leaders and heroes, explains IAF organization and training methods and reviews its procurement and testing policies and how the American-built F-15 and F-16 fighter-bombers became the backbone of the IAF. The book offers a fresh version of the IAF's role in the 1976 hostage-rescue mission at Entebbe, which the author cites as a significant turning point: concentration shifted toward the war against terrorism. Cohen, himself a veteran of air combat in several of Israel's wars, incorporates his own and other pilots' recollections into his fast-moving narrative. Photos. (Oct.)