It is not only America that is defending Israel. Israel is also defending America. Israel Hayom has learned that some of the missions carried out by the Israeli Air Force in Iran are intended to assist US forces in the region. These include both offensive and defensive missions, some of them specifically designed to help US troops.
Even before the war began, and throughout it, close and continuous coordination has been maintained between the IDF and US forces. Areas of responsibility and operational tasks are divided between the IDF and US Central Command. According to a knowledgeable source, the decision on which of the two militaries will carry out a given mission is made according to which has the relative advantage in completing it successfully, rather than by criteria such as which side views the target as more important or which side is more directly threatened by it.
That means there are cases in which US pilots are sent, for example, to hunt missile launchers aimed at Israel. At the same time, Israeli pilots are assigned missions such as striking missile launchers aimed at US bases and assets in the region. It should be stressed that in many cases these targets pose a threat to both Israel and the US, and that is probably true in most cases. Still, a knowledgeable source stressed that there are cases in which Israeli Air Force aircraft carry out strikes against targets that are clearly anti-American in nature.
In addition, there are cases in which Israeli intelligence directs US pilots to strike targets, as well as the reverse, in which US intelligence guides Israeli pilots.
'Infinite power'
Within the Israeli Air Force, officials continue to express a high degree of satisfaction with the "joint operation" with the Americans. The Americans are said to be highly impressed by Israeli capabilities, and in some cases have even adopted combat doctrines developed in Israel. Israeli pilots, too, are adopting American tactics.
Israelis, meanwhile, are impressed by what one Israeli source described as the American side's "infinite" power. He said the Israeli Air Force is stretching its capabilities and aircraft to the limit and achieving results that impress the Americans. Even so, the capabilities and operational endurance at the Americans' disposal are significantly greater than Israel's. That includes the huge US Air Force aircraft Israel does not possess, dozens of refueling planes, two aircraft carriers and more. "You can see this is a superpower," the Israeli source said.
One of the challenges facing both militaries is further reducing missile fire at Israel and the Gulf states, particularly from mountainous areas in northeastern Iran. Some of Iran's launchers and production facilities are located between mountain ridges or underground. In these remote areas there are also factories producing missile components and munitions, some of them hidden in folds of the terrain. The two militaries are working together to strike the Iranians at these distant targets as well.
