Eitan Ben Eliyahu

Aluf Eitan Ben Eliyahu (born 1944)[1] is a retired major general in the Israel Defense Forces and was the Commander of the Israeli Air Force (IAF).

Eitan Ben Eliyahu
Born1944
Jerusalem
Allegiance Israel
Service/branch Israeli Air Force
RankAluf
Battles/warsYom Kippur War
Operation Opera

Early life and military career

Eliyahu's father was born in Khorramshahr, Iran, and in 1922 immigrated to British-mandated Palestine; Eliyahu's mother was from Macedonia.[2][3] Eliyahu himself was born in Jerusalem in 1944.[1] During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Eliyahu shot down two Egyptian fighters as he led a squadron of F-4 Phantoms. June 27 1979 over Lebanon, while flying an F-15 Eagle as part of a 4 ship formation, he shot down a Syrian MiG 21 with the M61 cannon scoring the first recorded guns kill (the 3rd air to air kill) for the F-15. In 1981 he flew as fighter escort during Operation Opera, which resulted in the destruction of Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor.[1] Eliyahu served as commander of an F-15 squadron, member of the IAF Aerobatic Team,[4] a base commander, head of the Operational Requirements Division, and in 1987 was appointed Head of Operations for the IAF.[5] On July 1, 1996 Eliyahu was promoted to Commander of the IAF.[6] Over the course of his tenure Eliyahu focused on extending the range of IAF operations, especially in regard to Iran.[1] As such, Eliyahu ordered 25 F-15I fighters, which had a longer range than Israel's previously purchased F-15s.[1] Eliyahu stepped down as IAF commander on April 4, 2000.[6]

Post-military activities

Since leaving active duty, Eliyahu founded and serves as CEO of the Sentry Technology Group, and was the president of East West Ventures Ltd. from 2000 to 2002.[7] He serves as the Board Chairman of the Koret Foundation's Israel Economic Development Fund and of Aeronautics Defense systems,[8] and as the Co-Chair of the Israel National Museum of Science. Eliyahu is also on the boards of Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Zionism 2000, the Israel Democracy Institute, and the Rabin Research Center.[5][7]

Education

Eliyahu studied at Bar Ilan University, where he received a B.A. in economics and business administration. He also earned an M.A.[9] from Tel Aviv University in strategy and international relations and attended Harvard's six-week Advanced Management Program.[10]

References
  1. Melman, Yossi and Javedanfar, Meir. The Nuclear Sphinx of Tehran. Basic Books, 2008. ISBN 978-0-7867-2106-1 pp. 187–188.
  4. Goodman, Hirsh. Let Me Create A Paradise, God Said To Himself: A Journey Of Conscience From Johannesburg To Jerusalem, p. 123 (PublicAffairs, 2009).
  5. "Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eitan Ben Eliahu". Jerusalem Summit. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  6. Aloni, Shlomo. Holmes, Tony. Israeli F-4 Phantom II Aces. Osprey Publishing, 2004. ISBN 978-1-84176-783-3 p. 35
  7. "Museum Co-Chair Eitan Ben Eliahu". The Israel National Museum of Science. Archived from the original on 2007-09-13. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
  8. "Executive Summary". Aeronautics Ltd. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  9. "2003 Conference Speakers". Herzliya Conference. Archived from the original on 2007-11-10. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  10. "Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eitan Ben Eliahu — Director". Israel Air Force Center Foundation. Archived from the original on January 1, 2009. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
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