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Eitan Ben Eliyahu
Eitan Ben Eliahu
Born 1944
Place of birth Jerusalem
Allegiance Israel Israel
Service/branch Israel Air Force Flag Israeli Air Force
Rank Aluf
Battles/wars Yom Kippur War
Operation Opera

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).

Early life and military career[]

Eliyahu's father was born in Khorramshahr, Iran, and in 1922 immigrated to British-mandated Palestine; Eliyahu himself was born in Jerusalem in 1944.[1] During the 1973 Yom Kippur War Eliyahu shot down two Egyptian fighters as he led of a squadron of F-4 Phantoms, and 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, a base commander, head of the Operational Requirements Division, and in 1987 was appointed Head of Operations for the IAF.[2] On July 1, 1996 Eliyahu was promoted to Commander of the IAF.[3] Over the course of his tenure Eliyahu focused on extending the range of IAF operations, especially with 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.[3]

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.[4] He serves as the Board Chairman of the Koret Foundation's Israel Economic Development Fund and 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.[2][4]

Education[]

Eliyahu studied at Bar Ilan University, where he received a B.A. in economics and business administration. He also earned an M.A.[5] from Tel Aviv University in strategy and international relations and completed Harvard's Advanced Management Program.[6]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Melman, Yossi and Javedanfar, Meir. The Nuclear Sphinx of Tehran. Basic Books, 2008. ISBN 978-0-7867-2106-1 pp. 187–188.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eitan Ben Eliahu". Jerusalem Summit. http://www.jerusalemsummit.org/eng/short.php?speaker=201. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 Aloni, Shlomo. Holmes, Tony. Israeli F-4 Phantom II Aces. Osprey Publishing, 2004. ISBN 978-1-84176-783-3 p. 35
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Museum Co-Chair Eitan Ben Eliahu". The Israel National Museum of Science. https://archive.is/20121125234249/www.madatech.org.il/pages/MenuItemPage.aspx?ContentItem=1546. Retrieved 2008-10-11. 
  5. "2003 Conference Speakers". Herzliya Conference. http://www.herzliyaconference.org/Eng/_Articles/Article.asp?ArticleID=537&CategoryID=50. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
  6. "Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eitan Ben Eliahu — Director". Israel Air Force Center Foundation. http://www.iafc-foundation.org/about/boardeitan.html. Retrieved 2008-10-10. [dead link]
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