The Israeli Air Force has enjoyed good fortune with its F-35I Adir stealth fighter jets. Whether it is using them against Hamas and Hezbollah or staging a sizeable aerial attack against Iran, the United States is taking a close look and giving Israel an A+ in combat.
The Israelis took the initiative and got creative with their version of the Lightning II. They added attributes that gave them an advantage in the Middle East and increased operational tempo with high sortie rates against Israeli enemies.
Making the ‘Mighty One’ Even Better
Adir means “Mighty One” in Hebrew. The Israelis updated their Mighty One warbirds with better command and control attributes. They improved the software—not an easy task considering the F-35 is already considered a “flying computer.”
The F-35I has great jamming capabilities with an electronic warfare upgrade. The munitions are integrated more advantageously.
American Generals Are Excited About the F-35I Adir
US Air Force Lt. Gen. Michael Schmidt, Program Executive Officer and Director of the F-35 Lightning II Program, testified in 2023 before a House Armed Services Committee panel.
The F-35I’s combat performance has been “absolutely outstanding,” Schmidt exclaimed. “Their mission-capable rates are high. Their full mission capable rates are high,” he said.
The Israelis have given the United States credit for immediately making spare parts and other components available for the F-35I. This availability means the Israelis can “turn over” the jets more efficiently and prepare them to fly additional missions after landing. Israeli ground crews can rapidly insert “field mission data files” on each F-35I flight. The Adir pilots then have a better command of the mission parameters when they take to the skies.
Iran-backed Terror Groups Pay the Price
The F-35I Adir has flown many sorties against Hamas and Hezbollah. The Iranian-backed terrorists have no idea what hit them after successful Adir attacks. With air-to-air missiles such as the Sidewinder and the AMRAAM, the Israelis can also take out enemy missiles launched from Iran.
The Israelis have used ground strike capabilities against Syrian terror positions. The Adirs hit weapons depots, chemical weapons sites, and command and control centers, plus other military targets there.
Israeli Political Leadership Wants Even More Stealth Jets
Israel has 35 or more F-35Is. Thirty-five seems to be a perfect number for all of the combat missions. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s air force would prefer additional Lighting IIs—he would like to acquire a total of 75 F-35Is. The Israelis signed a deal for 25 more last summer.
The United States has conducted “fighter plane diplomacy” with Netanyahu over the years, and this effort has been successful. Israel is one of the few countries in the United States that permits the modification of its F-35s. It allows some of the best and brightest Israelis to fly combat missions and gives the pilots direct input on improving capabilities.
Iran Feels the Burn from F-35I Adir
Netanyahu ordered the Iran aerial operation last fall, and the F-35I Adir served as the vanguard in attack against Iranian military targets. The Israelis wanted to take out enemy air defense capabilities and missile manufacturing sites.
This strike was to answer the missile attack against Israel that Tehran ordered early in October of last year.
“Israel used more than 100 aircraft, carrying fewer than 100 munitions, and with no aircraft getting within 100 miles of the target in the first wave, and that took down nearly the entirety of Iran’s air-defense system,” British Admiral Tony Radakin said during a Royal United Services Institute lecture in London in December.
This shows that the F-35I can evade radar and target the enemy surface-to-air missile systems and their command and control installations for the main strike effort from F-16Is and F-15Is. The Iranians will not have capable air defenses for at least a year, according to Radakin.
F-35Is have also launched attacks at military sites in Yemen against the Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists. The Adirs conducted an aerial refueling to reach the Yemeni target area in October 2024. This was the longest-range Israeli combat mission since 1985.
The operation was to answer for Houthi missile attacks against the Jewish nation. The aerial refueling had to be timed just right to coincide with Israeli intelligence estimates that predicted the optimum time to strike the Houthis. Israel carried this out with aplomb.
Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of F-35s, is likely excited by the performance of the Joint Strike Fighter in combat. This is just what the Americans envisioned when they designated the airplane for export. Allowing the Israelis to modify their F-35s to the Adir model was a master stroke by the Pentagon.
Israel used the combat experience to get the F-35I Adirs ready for further use against terrorists and the Iranians if needed. American generals are enthused about the F-35I exploits and are likely taking these lessons learned back to Air Force training centers and possibly sharing the intelligence with other countries that fly the F-35. The Israeli experience with the F-35I has truly been exceptional.
About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood
Brent M. Eastwood, PhD is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for U.S. Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former U.S. Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.
