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Israel’s Defense Ministry said it has decided to buy additional F-35I fighters from U.S. defense contractor Lockheed Martin and F-15IA fighters from Boeing to bolster its air capabilities.
On May 3 (local time), the ministry said the purchases will cost the equivalent of several hundred hundred-million shekels (trillions of KRW, roughly several hundred million to a few billion USD) and that the Defense Procurement Committee recently approved the plan. The additional buys amount to one squadron each of the F-35I and the F-15IA. Once deliveries are complete, the Israeli Air Force is expected to operate about 100 F-35I stealth fighters and roughly 50 F-15IA jets, the Israeli-modified version of the next-generation F-15EX. Israel currently operates 48 of the initial 50 F-35Is it ordered. In 2023 it placed an order for 25 more F-35Is and in 2024 ordered 25 F-15IAs; those deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2028 and 2031, respectively.
In a statement, Israeli Defense Minister Katz said the recent “Roaring Lion” operation — Israel’s name for the Iran-initiated attack that began Feb. 28 — “once again demonstrated the overwhelming power of the Israeli Air Force and its decisive role in defending Israel.” He added that lessons from the operation require continued force buildup to ensure air superiority for decades to come.
The ministry also said last week that two cargo ships and several aircraft carrying 6,500 tons of U.S.-made military equipment — including thousands of rounds of ammunition and light-armored multipurpose vehicles — arrived in Israel.
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