EXPLAINER: Israel’s bold response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack in 'Operation Days of Repentance'
Israel launched a massive counterattack on Iran on October 26, in response to Iran’s 200 ballistic missiles fired on October 21. The operation, dubbed “Operation Days of Repentance”, involved approximately 100 aircraft, including F-15, F-16, and F-35 fighters, ROCK and Rampage long-range cruise missiles, air-to-air refuelers, AWACS, and electronic warfare aircraft.
The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) targeted 20 missile and drone facilities in three waves, focusing on Iran’s air defence, radar sites, and long-range missile production facilities. The first wave targeted Iran’s radar and air defence facilities to pave the way for the subsequent strikes. The second and third waves hit military sites, including those near Tange Bijar Gas Field, Abadan Oil Refinery, and Bandar Imam Khomeini Petrochemical Complex.
Israel vowed to take counter-action after Iran’s ballistic missile attack, and 25 days later, they made good on that promise. The wait was filled with intense speculation about targets, methods, and potential involvement from foreign powers like the United States. Israel’s strike targeted Iran’s air defence, radar sites, and long-range missile production facilities, significantly impacting their air defence capabilities.
Iran’s air defence system, mostly comprised of Russian-origin equipment with some modern systems like the S-300, was no match for Israel’s advanced military. Despite Iran’s claims of successfully countering Israel’s attacks in Tehran, Khuzestan, and Ilam provinces, their air force remains limited.
“Operation Days of Repentance” was a meticulously planned Israeli mission, involving formations of 30-35 aircraft. The operation required precise planning, including flight paths, navigation waypoints, and refuelling schedules. Israeli and US anti-missile defences were on high alert for potential Iranian retaliation.
Among the aircraft used by Israel is the fifth generation US-made F-35 Lightning II developed by Lockheed Martin and the most advanced aircraft in its inventory. A single-seat, single-engine, supersonic stealth multirole combat aircraft designed for both air superiority and strike missions, it also has electronic warfare and reconnaissance capabilities. It has a combat range of 1,410 km and a payload capacity of 8,200 kg, including various types of missiles and bombs.
Israel has about 40 such aircraft in service with a total order for 75 aircraft. The F-35 has also been widely exported with other operators including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
The twin-engine F-15, on the other hand, is older, having made its first flight in January 1972. Japan, Israel, South Korea and Saudi Arabia are the only export customers, though it is the mainstay of the US air defence and strike fighter fleet. It has two variants, F-15 A/C/D which is a single seat air superiority fighter and F-15 E a two-seat strike version. The latter has a combat range of 1,200 km and a payload capacity of 10,400 kg. Israel possesses about 70 of both variants, with reports that another 50 of the F-15 E’s upgraded version being on order.
Israel is the second largest operator of the F-16 after the United States, its country of origin. A single-seat light multi-role fighter, it has a combat range of 550 km and a payload capacity of 7,000 kg. It is the most widely exported contemporary US fighter, with over 2,000 aircraft being sold to 25 countries including India’s arch rival Pakistan and a few of Israel’s neighbours. Israel has 175 F-16s.
The targets were struck about 2,000 km away and taking the distance involved as well as other operational considerations such as the flight paths to avoid certain areas, air defence, radar sites, civilian flight routes, weather and to cater to other contingencies, air refuelling tankers would have also been involved. Israel has 15 tankers based on the Boeing 707 and C-130 Hercules airframes.
Airborne Warning and Control Aircraft (AWACS) as well as electronic warfare aircraft would have inevitably been a part of the strike mission not only for command, coordination and communication but also to keep an eye on the air situation, traffic in the vicinity and counter hostile enemy activity. Boeing 707, Gulfstream G-550 and Super King Air are among Israel’s fleet of 25 aircraft dedicated to this task and would have operated well away from the Iranian border.
Reports indicate that amongst Israel’s inventory of several air-to-ground weapons, Rampage and ROCK long range cruise missiles, both of Israeli origin, were used, which have a capability of hitting targets at 250 km and 400 km, respectively. Israel has also developed a new advanced cruise missile, Wind Demon that has a range of about 200 km and was unveiled at the 2024 Farnborough Air Show in France.
Besides attack missiles, some of the Israeli aircraft involved in the mission would also have been equipped with air-to-air missiles and air-to-surface missiles for self defence against hostile fighters and anti-aircraft weapons.
