Mosquito

A fighter bomber that served in the IAF in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s. The airplane was intended as a solution for two of the challenges that faced the IAF when the War of Independence ended: the need for ordered organization, and the purchase of combat planes that would meet the IAF’s specific requirements.

True, the Spitfire and Mustang were already in the IAF’s service, but multi-purpose aircraft - that could efficiently carry out attacks against ground targets as well as close support – were still lacking. The IAF needed a plane capable of carrying a relatively heavy bomb load and varied armaments; that could operate at long ranges and was available at a low price. In other words – it needed the Mosquito.

The Mosquito’s operational career in the IAF was less than impressive, but it made a significant contribution to the development of the IAF’s night flying capabilities.

Not long after Israel's War of Independance, a single Mosquito fighter was purchased in Canada, but was lost at sea on its way to Israel.

On February 17th 1951 a contract was signed for the purchase of 59 Mosquitos from France’s military surplus. The planes underwent extensive renovation in France, and only began to arrive in Israel on the 11th of June 1951. The pilots were trained in Swinderby Airbase in Britain, the Mosquito’s country of origin, and were then incorporated into the IAF’s first Mosquito Squadron. The Squadron was composed of 3 groups: Operations, Instruction and Photo-reconnaissance.

The Squadron’s officially defined duties included attack missions, as well as support of ground troops in both day- and night-time operations. The planes were flown on numerous training flights, including simulated air battle with Spitfires and Mustangs.

In 1953, Hugo Marom was appointed to set up the IAF’s first night-fighting squadron. The squadron operated from Hatzor Airbase, and the Mosquitos initially formed a part of the Photo-reconnaissance Group. Later on, they formed part of a separate squadron created especially for this purpose, which included other photo-recon planes.

Although the Mosquito proved to be a hard plane to fly and maintain, and was involved in accidents, it was considered valuable in terms of attack performance and bomb load capability.

In the early 1950’s, the first jet planes were incorporated into the IAF, and it was decided to dismantle the Mosquito Squadron. A short time before the Sinai Campaign the Squadron was re-established and the pilots underwent refresher courses and renewed flight training. During the fighting, the Mosquito carried out attacks on convoys and armored forces, using bombs, rockets, and strafing by cannon.

The plane’s primary target was Sharm a-Sheikh, which was attacked on four consecutive days. A fortnight after the Sinai Campaign ended, the squadron was permanently dismantled, and the story of the Mosquito’s service in the IAF came to a close.

Unfortunately Mosquitos are not preserved to the museum came only Two Rolls-Royce Merlin engines each providing 1,390 hp, which found in 1998, here are excerpts from the story: On the night of August 6, 1953 Released Mosquito aircraft structure IAF base in Hatzor bomb training field Abraham Negev. Training a night training flight was preceded by a long-term over the Mediterranean, the end of which, at first light, turn planes were to fly south and field-Abraham.
"Against Haifa we carried out over the sea, when suddenly the pilot mine noticed that one of the aircraft was gone. It was their airplane pilot Lt. Uriel Eshel and navigator Lt. encouraged seedling," says Hugo Marom, who was then commander of the squadron and led the mission. "None of us saw or heard anything. They just disappeared. Because the radio silence was part of the task, we figured Eshel and seedling lost us, decided not to break radio silence and went on a mission bombing alone."
Back in the squadron and aircraft structure and tamarisk seedling were slow in coming, began to think the worst. "Our hypothesis was Eshel seedling came from vertigo. We estimated they lost the lead plane which I flew on top of the one of the stars seemed to them as one of the aircraft structure. In this situation, within seconds it is possible to enter a spin out of control on the plane. We sent a team to look for them in the last place it appeared above the sea ".
With the arrival of the morning, sent two planes to look for the Mosquito and tamarisk seedling which appeared in last place, above the sea, near Haifa. The lead plane were pilot Lt. Eliezer Reisner and navigator Lt. Yehuda Katz, despite their young age, 23, were air crew excellent. They came to the area where the missing were recently began looking for.
That day was particularly hot day. The sea looks like a large mirror. There was not a single wave, which make it very difficult to maintain altitude flight over the sea, perfectly merged with the blue sky. Only a few hours after he disappeared Mosquito Eshel and sapling, crashed into the water leading search plane with Reisner and Katz. Again search teams were sent to the scene and again with no success. For years, the two cases were left unresolved.
These days, 45 years after, succeeded in locating missing persons unit of the Air Force (MPU) to locate the plane of Reisner Katz of blessed memory, and discoveries, given that so many years have passed since the plane disappeared, amazing. Plane found personal items of the crew: parachute, Parabellum pistol that belonged probably Eliezer Reisner, belt buckles and other remains that are currently in the process of identifying and testing.
"If you had asked me at the beginning of the search, 15 years ago, if we get into those findings, I would not believe it," Meyer says Baram. Baram, 59, a member of Kibbutz Mizra, deposited by the MPU to locate the Mosquito aircraft. It serves MPU unit almost since its inception. "Absalom son of Elkanah late founder of the unit, offered me right after the Yom Kippur War to join the unit. He was looking for people with all kinds of skills that can be useful tasks required Ethan. Since I was an amateur diver and participated in archaeological expeditions at sea as well as the kibbutz was the electrician, adapting to the needs of the unit. "