Putative Airstrikes 1973

The 1973 war began with air attacks on Israeli positions in Sinai and the Golan heights. About 200 Egyptian and 100 Syrian jets participated in these attacks. Most accounts of the Syrian raids indicate they were confined to the Golan. There is a notable exception, however. In Volume 5 of the ARAB MIGs series, Cooper et al. include accounts of SAF attacks inside Israel proper and even as far as the southern West Bank.

Thirty-six Syrian jets supposedly carried out these "deep penetration" raids. Twenty-four MIG-17s are said to have struck HAWK sites near Kfar Giladi and Tiberias, and also hit the Electronic Warfare (EW) center of the IDF Northern Command at Rosh Pina. In addition, it is claimed, 12 SU-20 fighter bombers, escorted by 8 MIG-21s, blasted the IDF/Air Force control center at Hebron in the West Bank.

Strangely, even though the reports are considered factual, no source corroborates them or mentions any results. No Palestinian from Hebron, no Israeli along the flight paths of the putative missions, or airmen presumably sent to intercept them, have ever confirmed these missions took place.

The alleged strike on a target in Hebron, in particular, doesn't appear to be credible. Syrian ORBAT data from Volume 5 indicates Syria's SU-20s (54 Squadron) were based at T-4, north of Damascus. That's pretty far from Hebron. The limited range of Soviet made aircraft would've been a problem, especially if the SU-20s were carrying bombs. A worse issue was the extremely risky nature of such a mission. To reach Hebron, 54 Squadron had to fly farther south than major Israeli airbases, notably Ramat David and Tel Nov. Almost certainly, Israeli interceptors from those bases, and others, would've intercepted 54 Squadron and its escorts. IAF Mirages would've shot down several jets and forced the others to jettison their bombs and flee. Even if there was no resistance before the AF control center was hit, the SU-20s and MIGs would've suffered losses on the way back. To improve morale in the dark first days of the war, the Israelis would've displayed wreckage from their kills. It's noteworthy that even in Sinai, where few Israeli Mirages were based, the defenders had two successes. They downed four SU-7s in one action and 7 jets in another, near Sharm el Sheik. Lack of similar reports from the northern front argues the putative missions are fictitious. They probably came out of a Syrian's imagination, long after the war.

An Su-20 jet.