One of 8 Israeli F-16s heavily damaged by massive floods at airbase
For the past week or more, the Middle East has been subject to massive flooding. Israel has been especially hard hit. A young couple drowned in an elevator in their Tel Aviv apartment building. But the flooding has had even wider military consequences for Israel’s Air Force. One of its main bases is Hatzor (pictured on map), in the south between Ashdod and Ashkelon. It houses Squadron 101, whose F-16s would be tasked with executing massive retaliation should an enemy wipe out Israel’s Jericho ICBM’s situated at its Sdot Micha (also known as Sdot Ha’Elah) base.
Damaged F-16
There are underground hangars housing a portion of the F-16 force at Hatzor. An immense and sudden flood poured into the hangars (according to the air force spokesperson 13-million cubic feet of water poured into the site within 30 minutes) and innundated at least eight planes worth $160-million (and far more if you include the sophisticated avionics installed by Israeli engineers). Pictures of the hangars show F-16s sitting in deep pools of water reaching at least to the middle of the plane’s fuselage. Though it’s hard to tell just how much damage the flooding caused, clearly a $20-million plane with its advanced electronic equipment and weapons systems isn’t meant to sit in water for hours on end. I’m guessing that the damage would involve destruction of electrical systems and weapons control systems. Given how expensive the planes are to begin with, repairs to them could run into the millions. Statements from the air force that the damage would be repaired within a week beggars belief.
As if this massive fashla wasn’t enough, yesterday the military censor tried for several hours to force Israeli media to remain quiet about the incident. But there was enough of a furor that the censor eventually relented and the news was reported. At least some of it was. That’s where I come in. I’ll tell you what remains under the censor’s thumb.
Israel HaYom report raised questions about the precise mission of the squadron whose planes were damaged
Squadron 101 is one of the air force’s most elite units. One of whose former commanders was once shot down and captured by Syria. Despite being tortured, he refused to expose any of Israel’s nuclear secrets. The Syrians eventually tortured him to death.
Though the mission of this unit as described above has never been published before, I learned it after Israel HaYom published an especially harsh criticism of the accident. The reporter alluded to the fact that the unit was part of an especially critical mission that demanded constant readiness. On reading this, I subsequently learned from an informed source what the mission of these F-16s at Hatzor is. In the event of a war in which an Israeli enemy destroys the country’s ICBM missiles, Squadron 101 would be tasked with attacking the enemy with weapons from Israel’s nuclear stockpile. Thus, the unit is a key element of Israel’s Doomsday Defense as well as part of its nuclear deterrent.
In light of this disaster, Israel’s military readiness was seriously compromised, even if only temporarily. That’s what the censor really didn’t want you to know: a key element of Israel’s air defense in the event of catastrophic war was destroyed by negligence.
In this particular case this is an above ground shelter (clear from the picture) the Israeli term for “Hardened Aircraft Shelter” is דת”ק – דיר תת-קרקעי – but it is a misnomer as they are mostly above ground (as here).
@Richard
You and your source have revealed the secret mission of Squadron 101, not to mention the location of Israel’s ICBMs.
Why would you do that?
Israel is an ally of the United States. Why would you want to make her, even marginally, less safe?
I don’t get you.
@ Samantha Fochs: Obviously, the mission of Squadron 101 is not secret or my source would not have known it. And trust me, if he knows it thousands of others know it as well.
The reason why it’s important for Israelis to know this is that not knowing makes it that much easier to take your country to war. Ignorance is the boon of the dictator. If his followers don’t know what he’s doing he can do virtually whatever he wants. You may be happy if Bibi takes you to war or drops nuclear weapons on an enemy. But most citizens of democracies would want to know these things so that they can express an informed opinion about them.
As for making Israel “less safe.” On the contrary, if there is a nuclear conflagration in the Middle East you will not only not be safe, you will likely be dead. My goal is to contribute to making such a thing impossible.
As for “not getting me,” that’s OK most Israelis don’t. I don’t take it personally.
The Trump cabal and the Netanyahu’s of this world are making the Middle East less safe. Richard is not a ‘wizard of oz’ who knows more than the global intelligence community combined. Doomsday nuclear weapons have no place on the planet. Pentagon and the John Bolton doctrine conceived mini-nukes for the ME battlefield. One needs to know out of which corner existential threat comes. That’s why I read and support Richard and Tikun Olam.
This guy makes a mountain out of a molehill.
@eddie: That’s a $200-million molehill. Have you ever seen a molehill worth that much? I know I haven’t. But maybe where you come from money doesn’t grow on trees, it grows on molehills.
Not Likely. according to the pictures it is either F16C or D and not F16I
It would likely that such a high penetration task would be left only to the F16I/ F35/ F15I
@ Not Likely: I said Squadron 101 was responsible for the nuclear attack. I never said these particular planes were the specific ones which would be responsible for the operation. The point remains that when 8 F-16s are destroyed it massively impacts Israel’s military preparedness. And the lack of awareness that major flooding could cause this disaster is yet another element of this fashla.