SETH J. FRANTZMAN
An Israeli Air Force F-35 Lightning II fighter jet performs during a graduation ceremony of Israeli Air Force pilots at the Hatzerim base in the Negev desert, near the southern city of Beer Sheva, on June 24, 2021.
JERUSALEM — The Israel Defense Forces said that it used F-35I Adir fighter jets to shoot down a cruise missile this week, the first known cruise missile intercept by the American-made stealth fighter.
“In recent days, a cruise missile launched from the southeast toward Israeli airspace was detected by the IAF’s control and detection systems. After tracking the cruise missile’s trajectory, Adir fighter jets were scrambled and successfully intercepted the missile,” the IDF said today, while releasing video of the incident.
The cruise missile was likely launched from the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, although the IDF did not specify the launch site. While Israeli did not specify what weapon was used to intercept the incoming cruise missile, Israel’s F-35I variants are armed with both the AIM-9X Sidewinder and Aim-120 AMRAAM missiles.
Israel’s F-35s were declared operational in 2017 and they were used in combat in 2018 for the first time. Israel signed a deal to buy an additional 25 of the aircraft in July. The country will eventually have 75 of the fifth-generation aircraft.
The IDF also hold the title of the first known kill by an F-35, when in March 2021 it shot down two drones it says were launched from Iran.
Since the Oct. 7 assault by Hamas that killed more than 1,400 people in Israel, the airborne threat from Yemen has been increasing. On Oct. 18, the Houthis in Yemen launched drones and cruise missiles toward Israel, with the Pentagon saying the USS Carney intercepted 15 drones and four cruise missiles over 9 hours. Another attack was launched on Oct. 27, but the projectiles landed in Egypt. And on Oct. 31 Israel used its Arrow system, which was jointly developed with the US, to intercept a ballistic missile from Yemen.
While this is the first time an F-35 is known to have killed a cruise missile, the capability has long been discussed.
The Trump administration’s Missile Defense Review, released January 2019, included language calling for the F-35 to be developed and armed for an ICBM intercept mission. And In 2019 The Jerusalem Post reported that “amid concerns that Iran may attack Israel with cruise missiles, a senior Lockheed Martin representative revealed on Tuesday that the stealth F-35 Adir fighter jet can detect and intercept such threats.” At the time Gary North, vice president for customer requirements and aeronautics at Lockheed, “told reporters that the AN/APG-81 AESA radar allows the advanced jet to identify and intercept airborne threats flying at a low altitude and at high speeds, like cruise missiles.”
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