JERUSALEM (TOI): Isra-eli Air Force and German Luftwaffe aircraft perfor-med a flyby over the Kne-sset in Jerusalem on Sund-ay afternoon as a display of the close cooperation between the two countries and their militaries, the Israel Defense Forces said.
This was the first time that German aircraft have flown over Jerusalem since World War I.
“The flyby expresses the strong partnership and connection between the air forces and the countries, as well as the commitment to continued cooperation in the future,” Israel Defense Forces said.
Earlier on Sunday, the heads of the IAF, Maj. Gen. Amikam Norkin, and the Luftwaffe, Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz, visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum in Jerusalem.
Sunday’s flyby was a continuation of a commemorative effort that began last August, when Israeli jets flew over the Dachau concentration camp and the Fuerstenfeldbruck airfield, where 11 Israeli Olympic athletes were killed by Palestinian in 1972.
The flyby began at 3:35 p.m., when the aircraft flew over the Knesset, continuing over the surrounding government complex, then leaving the area in the direction of the capital’s Malha mall.
Norkin, flying an F-15 fighter jet, led the Israeli aircraft, including an F-35 stealth fighter, while Gerhartz flew a Eurofighter that was painted in the colors of the German and Israeli flags.
The flyby was part of a kickoff event for a multinational aerial exercise, dubbed Blue Flag, which is being hosted by the Israeli Air Force this month.
In addition to the Germ-an-Israeli flyby, another overfly was scheduled to take place on Sunday afternoon above Jerusalem and Tel Aviv with the six other countries participating in the drill: the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, France, Greece and India.
The Israeli Air Force credits the biennial Blue Flag exercise and other international aerial drills with improving its capabilities, as it both allows Israeli pilots an opportunity to see how other air forces operate and teaches them to effectively communicate with foreign pilots and crews, which may come in handy if Israel ever participated in a multinational military operation.
On a larger, strategic level, these international exercises also strengthen diplomatic relations between the participating countries.
