Eitan Ben Eliyahu

Eitan Ben Eliyahu
Born 1944
Jerusalem
Allegiance Israel Israel
Service/branch  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. 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. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
  5. ↑ "2003 Conference Speakers". Herzliya Conference. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  6. ↑ "Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eitan Ben Eliahu — Director". Israel Air Force Center Foundation. Retrieved 2008-10-10.