Flight Academy and Aerobatic Team

Initially, the IAF Flight Academy was moved here from Tel Nof Airbase and has since been using the northwestern part of the airbase and runway for its propeller trainers together with the IAF Aerobatic Team. The southern area with three other runways is in use by the fighter jets. Since the departure of the last helicopter squadron, a large heliport in the northern area has only been used by the Flight Academy's training helicopters (see map in gallery).

The Flight Academy had already flown the French two-seater Fouga CM.170 Magister Tzukit at Tel Nof Airbase since 1960, which it kept for a total of 50 years in different versions until it was decommissioned in 2010 and was also flown by the Aerobatic Team during this time. These Hatzerim aircraft were also used during the Six-Day War to carry out attacks on enemy radar stations and anti-aircraft artillery and also did close air support (CAS).^[2]

From 2010, the Flight Academy and the Aerobatic Team were equipped with the Beechcraft T-6 Texan II Efroni, a two-seat turboprop aircraft that has similar flight characteristics to a light jet and is ideal for both purposes.^[3] It is used in over a dozen Air Forces worldwide for training purposes.

"Hammers" and "Knights Of The Orange Tail" Squadron

From 1996, the "Hammers" Squadron^[4] based on Hatzerim received the F-15I Ra'am, which was adapted to Israeli needs and is derived from the F-15E Strike Eagle. From 2006, the "Knights Of The Orange Tail" Squadron^[5] finally received the adapted F-16I Sufa, derived from the two-seat F-16D Block 50/52 Plus. Both squadrons had previously flown the F-4E Phantom II Kurnas since the 1970s.

Operation Outside the Box

On September 6, 2007, four F-15Is from the "Hammers" Squadron on Hatzerim and four F-16Is from Ramon Airbase flew an attack on an almost completed nuclear reactor in Syria under the code name Operation Outside the Box and destroyed it. It was only more than 10 years later that Israel officially acknowledged the attack.^[6] They wanted to prevent Syria from building atomic bombs from the nuclear material obtained.

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  Machines and cadets of the IAF Flight Academy on Hatzerim in 1969
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  Four pilots of the IAF Aerobatic Team on Hatzerim in 1976
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  A retired Fouga CM.170 Magister Tzukit of the IAF Aerobatic Team
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  A TA-4H Skyhawk Ayit two-seater of 102 Squadron "Flying Tiger" 2008 at Hatzerim
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  A retired F-4E Phantom II Kurnas of the 69 Squadron "Hammers" at the IAF Museum
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  The Syrian nuclear reactor destroyed by Operation Outside the Box in 2007

Crash of a Grob G 120A-I Snunit

On 24 November 2020, a Grob G 120A-I Snunit from the IAF Flight Academy crashed during a training flight in an open field near Kibbutz Mishmar HaNegev 15 kilometers north of the base. The 42-year-old flight instructor and his 19-year-old student pilot were killed. In March of the following year, after extensive investigations, the IDF announced that the accident had been caused by a stall at too low an altitude, which means human error. The remaining 15 aircraft of this type from Germany on Hatzerim were banned from taking off for a month after the crash. It was the first fatal incident of its kind since 2008, when a flight instructor and a student died on board another type of training aircraft.^[10]

Nuclear weapons

Hatzerim, beside Tel Nof Airbase, is believed to play a role in Israel's nuclear deterrence, as both bases are home to F-15 fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear weapons. It is unknown whether such weapons are also stored at Hatzerim other than in the depots at the Sdot Micha Airbase. However, the newer type of F-15I Ra'am, which is based only at Hatzerim, is better suited to carry these weapons than the older models of the F-15 at Tel Nof. The F-16I Sufa stationed here could also be intended for this purpose.^[11] About 550 meters east of the central runway, there is an additional fenced and secured rectangular area − within the base with two earth-covered bunkers – that could serve as a nuclear weapons storage facility and from where the F-15I and F-16I fighter jets could be equipped with such weapons (see current satellite images and map above).

F-15I and F-15IA

The 25 F-15I Ra'am jets from the "Hammers" Squadron, which date back to the 1990s, are to be brought up to date in the coming years and receive the same avionics and systems as the USAF's new F-15EX Eagle II.^[12] At the same time, the even older F-15C/D on Tel Nof will be gradually replaced by new F-15IA (Israel Advanced) – the Israeli variant of the F-15EX.^[13] There will probably also be an exchange of F-15 jets between the bases so that the traditional "Hammers" Squadron is equipped with the latest machines.

2023 Hamas attack

During Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, armed Palestinians came within a few kilometers of the airfield, which is about 25 kilometers from the Gaza Strip. They had already invaded the town of Ofakim to the north, killed residents or taken them hostage and were only driven out or killed by the IDF the following day after fierce fighting.^[14]