From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, July 11, 2023
‘We swore to serve the kingdom, not the king,’ reserve pilots said to tell air force chief
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Reservist pilots met today with Israeli Air Force chief Tomer Bar, amid growing threats by members of the IDF reserves to stop showing up for volunteer duty.
The group of pilots, who represented hundreds of others, told Bar that “we swore to serve the kingdom, not the king,” according to an unsourced Channel 12 news report.
A separate report by the Walla news site says Bar praised the pilots, some of whom said they were “close to a very tough moment morally.” Bar reportedly responded by saying he understood what they were going through but said the air force wouldn’t tolerate insubordination and asked they keep things as “they’ve been for 70 years now.”
The news site also says four pilots in the same squadron said this morning they would not be at a training session scheduled for today, with the military looking into the matter.
The Times of Israel Community.