Where to watch the Israeli Air Force’s annual Independence Day flyby
Foreign pilots to participate in Air Force airshows on Wednesday from Tiberias in north, along Mediterranean coast, through Jerusalem, to IAF base in south
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The Israeli Air Force will hold its annual Independence Day flyover on Wednesday, with various aircraft zipping over cities and towns throughout the country over the course of the morning and early afternoon.
Over 100 aircraft will take part in the flyover, including F-15, F-16, and F-35 fighter jets; Lavi training aircraft; C-130 cargo planes; a Boeing refueling plane; Black Hawk, Sea Stallion, Panther and Apache helicopters; and Israel Aerospace Industries Heron drones.
This year, several foreign pilots will join in the flyover, which will include an F-16 fighter jet from the United States and Eurofighter Typhoons from Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy, “as a sign of partnership between the countries and the unique relationship of the State of Israel with them,” the Israeli military said.
The Air Force displays will be made up of an aerobatics show — including fighter jets simulating dogfighting — and a flyby.
The airshow: The six Beechcraft T-6 Texan II turboprop airplanes that make up the aerobatic team are scheduled to begin their show at 9:14 a.m. over the Ramat David Air Base in northern Israel, continuing to Tiberias for a show at 9:29 a.m., and over the beaches of Haifa at 9:51 a.m.
From there, the planes will head to southern Israel and perform over the Air Force Museum in the Hatzerim Air Base at 11:50 a.m., before traveling to Tel Aviv’s Bograshov Beach at 12:12 p.m., the Tel Nof Air Base at 12:36 p.m., Jerusalem’s Sacher Park at 2:27 p.m. and finally Ashdod’s beach at 2:49 p.m.
At the same time, fighter jets will carry out simulated dogfighting over some of the sites.
F-15 jets will hold a display over the Ramat David Air Base at 9:25 a.m., Haifa at 9:35 a.m., Tel Aviv at 12:40 p.m., and Tel Nof at 12:50 p.m.
F-35I stealth fighters will carry out simulated maneuvers over Haifa at 9:25 a.m., the Ramat David Air Base at 9:35 a.m., Jerusalem at 9:55 a.m., the Tel Nof Air Base at 11:50 a.m., Tel Aviv at 12:00 p.m., and lastly the Hatzerim Air Base at 12:20 p.m.
The airbases, along with the military’s Samaria Brigade Base in the West Bank, will be open to the public on Independence Day.
The flyby: Here is a partial list of flyby times for cities and towns throughout the country:
Jerusalem: 11:04 a.m.
Tel Aviv: 11:16 a.m.
Haifa: 11:24 a.m.
Modiin: 11:33 a.m.
Beersheba: 10:12 a.m.
Ashdod: 10:00 a.m.
Netanya: 11:19 a.m.
Rehovot: 11:13 a.m.
Sderot: 10:04 a.m.
Beit Shemesh: 11:07 a.m.
A full list (in Hebrew) of flyover sites and times, as well as a link to a smartphone application to track the aircraft, can be found here.
