Air Campaign - Yom Kippur War

 This is a new title in the Osprey Air Campaign series covering the Yom Kippur War by Shlomo Aloni. The Arab-Israeli conflict was my first dabble into modern wargaming; this war has all the critical elements of that conflict. However, I haven't read much about the air campaign, so this title looks interesting.

The Yom Kippur War, also known as the October War, was fought between a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria against Israel from October 6 to October 25, 1973. The war began on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism when Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israeli forces in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights, territories Israel had captured in the 1967 Six-Day War. Egypt aimed to reclaim the Sinai, while Syria aimed to retake the Golan Heights.

Initially, the Arab forces made significant gains, catching Israel off guard. However, after several days of fighting, Israel regrouped and launched counteroffensives. By the end of the war, Israel had pushed deep into Egyptian and Syrian territories, but a ceasefire brokered by the United States and the Soviet Union brought the fighting to an end. Despite Israel's eventual military success, the war was seen as a psychological and strategic blow, leading to significant changes in its defence policies.

I had assumed that Israeli airpower was all-pervading. However, the author points out that after the war, Israel’s Deputy Chief of Staff stated that the ILAF had destroyed less than 100 tanks. Years later, a claim emerged that out of the 1,500 tanks examined postwar to ascertain the cause of damage/destruction, not one was hit from the air. Likewise, the Israeli prewar plans to completely destroy the enemy’s air forces and air defence forces had failed.

While the Israeli Air Force was outnumbered on paper, they had a qualitative advantage, particularly with the F4 Phantom called Kurnasse in Israeli service. However, air warfare had moved on considerably since the 1967 War, and the Arabs had hardened bunkers and surface-to-air missile systems. This required a different approach and a significant change in plans. 

The author concludes, "The ILAF may not have produced images of victory as it did in the June 1967 War. The ILAF may not have performed as well as may have been expected from prewar investments and promises. Nevertheless, the ILAF shaped the October 1973 War. The ILAF drove Egypt and Syria to develop their air defenses into formidable forces, therefore diverting funding from offensive ground forces."

The book provides all you would expect from this series: a breakdown of each side's capabilities, objectives, and campaign—well illustrated with quality maps and artwork. However, it was the analysis that I found most interesting and new—to me, at least.

I have a few 1/200-scale aircraft to complement the ground forces. I'm not quite ready to invest in the air war, but if you are, this book has everything you need.