US Air Force discloses transfer to Israel of F-15 fighters, Hellfire missiles

After the signing of the US $38bn military aid package for Israel, the US Air Force confirmed that during the Obama administration, Israel had received new hardware from the United States including 10 F-15 fighters, several C-130 cargo aircraft, AGM-114 Hellfire missiles and joint direct attack munitions.

The 10 F-15Ds are excess defense articles, rather than foreign military sales, according to a White House fact sheet published this week. After long service with the US National Guard air arm, the F-15Ds will  undergo at upgrades at Israeli Aerospace Industries, as will the C-130 freight planes.

The new aid package takes effect on Oct. 1, 2018. US National security adviser Susan Rice said the additional funding will allow Israel to update its fighter aircraft fleet including additional F-35s and F-16s. While Israel defense officials requested more F-15 squadrons in 2015 as part of a “compensation package” following the US’s decision to lift sanctions against Iran, industry sources later told FlightGlobal that acquiring additional F-15s was unlikely

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