June 5, 1967 · Egypt / Air War Theater
June 5, 1967
At 7:45 a.m. on June 5 — when Israeli intelligence knew Egyptian pilots would be eating breakfast — 183 Israeli aircraft fly low over the Mediterranean and destroy 300 Egyptian aircraft in less than three hours. Flying in tight waves, Israeli jets hit 11 Egyptian airfields simultaneously, destroying planes on the ground, cratering runways, and eliminating Egypt's entire air force before it can take off. A second wave destroys Jordan, Syria, and Iraq's air forces hours later.
Commanders