Six-Day War 1967: Operation Focus and the 12 hours that changed the Middle East

Description

On one day in June, the balance of air power in the Middle East was turned upside down by perhaps the most ruthlessly effective air superiority campaign in history - Operation Moked, or Focus. In 1967, the Israeli Air Force was outnumbered more than two to one by the jets of hostile Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Iraq. Operation Focus was Israel's ingenious strike plan to overturn the balance. At 0745hrs on June 6, Israeli jets hit Egypt's airfields simultaneously, first bombing runways and then strafing aircraft. Another 20 follow-up missions were already in the air, initially scheduled to hit every five minutes. This new history of Operation Focus explains how the concept for Focus was devised and meticulously planned, the astonishing rate of serviceability and turnaround speed it required from ground crews, and how the relentless tempo of strikes shattered one air force after another. It is the story of how Israel's victory in the Six-Day War began with a single, shocking day.

Shlomo Aloni has authored dozens of books and hundreds of articles covering Israel Air Force heritage and Middle East air warfare history. He lives in Israel.

Six-Day War 1967 may offer a unique addition to any jet age military aviation scholar's library. Given the lessons learned on preparedness that it demonstrated, it is unlikely that any air arm--including Israel's--is likely to achieve such a lopsided surprise victory against a comparable enemy force again. - Aviation History Magazine