Israel's air force unleashes over 100 jets in Iran strike
Israel conducted a retaliatory strike on various Iranian military infrastructure sites during the night of October 25-26. Here is what the Israeli Air Force used in the attack.
Israel confirmed that over 100 aircraft were involved in the operation, targeting multiple locations in Iran. These included a drone factory in Tehran, at least one facility involved in ballistic missile production, and two or more anti-aircraft systems intended to protect Iranian airspace.
One of these systems was identified as the MIM-23 HAWK, based on satellite images from a few days earlier, and a fire at its location visible on NASA's real-time fire monitoring tool. The second is believed to be an S-300 system battery, with reports indicating that a command vehicle equipped with radar was hit.
In the operation, Israel used F-35I aircraft and most likely F-15s armed with ROCKS aero-ballistic missiles, which have a range that potentially exceeds 620 miles. Israeli Air Force planes were spotted over Jordan, which is about 930 miles from Tehran, suggesting they may have been launched from there or possibly over Iraq.
F-35I planes: Israel's unique aviation machine
The Israeli F-35I Adir is a special version of the F-35 aircraft, significantly more expensive than the standard model used by the US and NATO countries. Israel has integrated its unique glide bomb models with this aircraft, though cruise missiles are too large for the internal weapons bays.
For this reason, the F-35I likely acted as the spearhead, mirroring American operational concepts and using its advanced sensors to clear the way for older aircraft. Thanks to its stealth technology, the F-35I could potentially engage, for example, F-14s tasked with intercepting F-15s.
The second role for the F-35I might have been serving as a miniature AWACS, providing more precise targeting data for the F-15s flying over 60 miles behind. This could allow them to strike anti-aircraft batteries, whose radars could not detect the F-35I.
The arsenal of the Israeli Air Force — possessing unique weapons on a global scale
Meanwhile, the F-15s primarily served as carriers for the ROCKS missiles, which evolved from the Sparrow ballistic missiles designed as test targets for the Arrow-3 anti-ballistic system. Sparse information indicates a two-stage design with a booster that detaches after burning out, as evidenced by previous attacks when Israeli-made boosters were found in Iraq.
Israeli manufacturer Rafael does not provide detailed information, keeping everything under the "extended range" phrase. However, it appears to be an aero-ballistic missile, initially ascending into space and then descending at speeds exceeding multiple times Mach 1 (around 1,230 mph). Essentially, it's like a scaled-down MGM-140 ATACMS or Iskander-M, launched from the air rather than the ground.
This makes it a very difficult target to shoot down, with only a few anti-aircraft systems worldwide capable of handling it. Due to weight restrictions, the warhead is likely smaller, likely below 440 lbs instead of 1,100 lbs. Rafael mentions only two variants: fragmentation-high explosive and penetrating, which are designed for bunker destruction.
Notably, the small warhead is not a problem given sufficient precision, with Rafael boasting an error margin of just 10 feet. This is achieved not only through the classic combination of inertial and satellite navigation but also with an electro-optical seeker that detects the target's thermal image, likely based on modules from SPICE. Furthermore, ROCKS also can home in on radar signal sources, similar to AGM-88 HARM missiles.
