Kfir
The Dassault Mirage III/5 had long been an important part of the Israel Defense
Force/Air Force (IDF/AF), and had played a key role in establishing Israeli air
superiority during the Six-Day War in 1967. However, at the end of the Six-Day
War in 1967, the government of France decided to embargo the delivery of a
batch of Mirage 5Js that the IDF/AF had ordered. Faced with a continuing threat
from its Arab neighbors, Israel concluded that it could no longer be certain of
a supply of combat aircraft from overseas, and decided that it had to
manufacture its own.
One of Israel's first efforts was an unlicensed copy of the Mirage 5, which was
known as the Nesher (Eagle). The Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) Nesher was
basically a copy of the Mirage 5 which was developed and produced in Israel
with some covert French assistance plus a good deal of espionage. Production
drawings for the Atar 09C engine were stolen from the Swiss factory that was
building the engine under license, and many airframe production drawings were
stolen by Israeli agents operating in France.
The first Nesher flew in September of 1969. A total of 69 Neshers were built by
IAI between May 1971 and late 1974. The Nesher was available for the Yom Kippur
War of October 1973, and some 40 Neshers saw action in that conflict. In the
late 1970s, 26 Neshers surplus to IDF/AF requirements were sold to Argentina
under the export designation Dagger. Seventeen Daggers were lost during the
1982 Falklands/Malvinas war, during which they operated primarily in the
fighter-bomber and antishipping roles.
The IAI Kfir (Lion Cub) was a further derivative of the IAI Nesher. It was
apparent that the Atar 09C of the Mirage 5/Nesher had insufficient power, and
in 1968 the IAI began to look at alternative powerplants for an upgraded
version of the Nesher. Work on the project began in 1968, with one team looking
at the General Electric J79 and the other concentrating on the Rolls Royce
Spey. The J79 was eventually selected, primarily because it powered the F-4
Phantom that had just been ordered by the IDF/AF. In April of 1969, the IDF/AF
loaned a Mirage IIIBJ (No 988) to IAI for a trial installation with the new
engine. The re-engined aircraft flew for the first time on September 21, 1969.
A re-engined Nesher flew in September 1971.
As a result of their design work on the re-engined Mirage IIIBJ, IAI suggested
that a much more sophisticated machine could be built. The new project was
named Kfir (Lion Cub). The airframe was based on that of the Mirage/Nesher, but
the rear fuselage was slightly shorter and larger in diameter in order to
accommodate the J79. The 11 percent greater mass flow of the J79 required the
use of larger air intakes, and the higher operating temperatures of the engine
required the fitting of extensive heat shielding of the rear fuselage. A large
dorsal air scoop was installed at the base of the fin to supply cooling air to
the afterburner. The landing gear was strengthened and provided with
longer-stroke oleos. The cockpit was extensively revised, and a considerable
amount of Israeli-built electronics were incorporated. The internal fuel
tankage was slightly rearranged and its capacity was increased to a total of
713 gallons.
The prototype Kfir was a conversion of Nesher No. 712. It flew for the first
time in June of 1973. The Kfir entered production too late for participation in
the Yom Kippur War of October 1973, but IDF/AF Kfirs have been active in
numerous subsequent Israeli military actions against guerilla installations in
Lebanon.
The first IAI Kfirs were not equipped with canards, and some had a round-tipped
radome for their ranging radar. They were essentially little more than
J79-powered Neshers. The basic Kfir was produced in only relatively few numbers
(27) and most were later upgraded to Kfir C.1 standards with small narrow-span
fixed canards on the upper air intakes and rectangular strakes behind the
ranging radar on the sides of the nose.
In 1985, the US Navy leased 12 Kfir C.1s from Israel for use as dissimilar air
combat trainers. The Kfir C.1 in US Navy service was assigned the designation
F-21A. They received the Bureau of Aeronautics serial numbers 163298/163309.
The twelve F-21As went to VF-43 at NAS Oceana in 1985, where they were painted
in a two-tone grey scheme. They were replaced by F-16Ns in early 1988, and were
all returned to Israel in March of 1988.
The Marine Corps established its own dissimilar air combat training unit,
VFMT-401, at Yuma, Arizona in August of 1987. VFMT-401 received 13 F-21As
leased from Israel in 1987. These were given a non-standard serial number
derived from the aircraft's three-digit construction number prefixed by 999 for
bookkeeping purposes to make them compatible with Navy computer systems. Some
USMC F-21As were painted in a two-tone grey scheme, whereas others retained
Israeli camouflage. USMC F-21As were operated by VFMT-401 for a couple of years
until being replaced in late 1989 by F-5E Tiger IIs obtained from the USAF.
These F-21As were then returned to Israel, bringing the era of the F-21A in US
service to an end.
The Kfir C.2 and C.7 were later versions of the design with more capable
electronics, additional weapons hardpoints, and the ability to carry out
multirole operations. None of these ever served in the USA.
The Kfir (which means lion cub) is basically a redesigned Mirage 5 with a canard mounted on the air intake. The wings are low-mounted, delta-shaped with a sawtooth in the leading edges. There are small canards are mounted on the air intakes. There is one turbojet engine inside fuselage. There are semicircular air intakes alongside the fuselage. There is a large, single exhaust. The fuselage is tube-shaped with a long, solid, pointed nose. The body widens at the air intakes. There is a bubble canopy flush with the spine. The tail has no tail flats. The fin is swept-back and tapered with a prominent step in the leading edge.
Dissimilar air combat trainer for Navy and Marine Corps
F-21A was the designation given to 25 Israel Aircraft Industries Kfir C.1
fighters that were leased by the US Navy and US Marine Corps from Israel for
dissimilar air combat training.
Specifications | |
Country of Origin | Israel |
Constructor | Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) |
Similar Aircraft | |
Crew | |
Role | |
Armament | 13,415 lb (6,085 kg) of mixed ordinances |
Length | 53 ft, 8 in (16.36 m) |
Span | 27 ft (8.24 m) |
Speed | Mach 2.3 |
Combat Radius | 768 KM |
Range | 2,008 miles (1744 nautical miles |
User Countries |