114 Squadron (Israel Air Force)

114 Squadron formed the foundation of the Israel Air Force's heavy-lift helicopter capability. From Tel Nof, it operated the Super Frelon and then the CH-53 Yasur for missions ranging from routine transport and rescue to long-range operations beyond enemy lines.[3][2] In 2023, it ceased operating as a separate Yasur squadron when it merged with 118 Squadron, pending plans for its eventual re-establishment with the CH-53K.[4][2]

The 114th Squadron had earlier existed as a training squadron before being disbanded in 1956.[3] It was reformed in January 1966 under the command of Major Haim Nave', who had previously led the Sikorsky S-58 "Rolling Sword" squadron, and was based at Tel Nof.[3][2] The reconstituted unit became the IAF's first heavy-lift helicopter squadron. Its initial Super Frelon training took place in France with just six pilots and one aircraft — "the whole squadron," as a veteran later recalled.[2]

The unit quickly acquired the nickname "Super Frelon Squadron," which the source says it retained long after it ceased operating the type.[3] The Super Frelon received the Hebrew designation "Tzir'a" (Hornet), and only four aircraft had arrived by the time Israel entered its next war.[3]

The squadron's principal roles included heavy transport, troop insertion, supply delivery, rescue, medical evacuation, and special operations. The Yasur's cargo compartment and range enabled it to carry personnel, equipment, vehicles, and outsized loads over long distances, including on classified missions beyond enemy lines.[4][2] A standard Yasur crew comprised two pilots and two airborne mechanics, who served as both technical specialists and combat crew members.[2]

During the 2006 Lebanon campaign, a RAND report described the IAF's two CH-53 squadrons and two Blackhawk squadrons collectively as conducting heavy-lift, insertion, supply, medical-evacuation, and combat-search-and-rescue missions. Their assault and utility helicopter crews flew approximately 2,000 sorties, although that campaign-wide figure cannot be attributed specifically to 114 Squadron.[1]

When the Six-Day War broke out in June 1967 — barely a year after the squadron's reformation — only four Super Frelons were in service, yet the aircraft were immediately committed to transport and assault tasks.[3] On June 5, 1967, they flew medical evacuations in the Sinai. Two days later, three Super Frelons joined Sikorsky S-58s to land IDF troops at Sharm-A-Sheikh.[3] On June 10, the helicopters transported equipment supporting Israeli forces on the Golan Heights. By the end of the war, 114 Squadron had flown 41 sorties.[3]

The War of Attrition represented what one source describes as the Super Frelon's operational heyday.[3] On October 21, 1967, after the Israeli Navy destroyer Eilat was sunk off the Egyptian coast, Super Frelons used their ability to land on water to help rescue and evacuate the ship's sailors. The aircraft recovered 23 men from the Mediterranean.[3]

On October 31, 1968, the squadron took part in a deep-penetration raid against Egyptian infrastructure at Naj Hamdi and Kina. Two helicopters carried paratroopers more than 700 kilometers into Egyptian territory to attack a hydroelectric power station, while another pair detonated bombs placed at a dam and bridge. The raiding party suffered no casualties, and the operation encouraged the IDF to undertake similar long-range helicopter missions.[3]

After Palestinian terrorists attacked an El Al aircraft in Athens on December 26, 1968, Israel launched Operation Tshura ("Reward") at Beirut Airport two days later. Three IAF Super Frelons landed Israeli commandos who destroyed 13 Arab airliners before withdrawing to Israel.[3] The operation angered France and directly contributed to its boycott of weapons sales to Israel. Israel consequently abandoned plans to purchase additional Super Frelons and turned to the United States for CH-53 Sea Stallions.[3]

Further operations followed. On December 26, 1969, three Super Frelons joined recently delivered CH-53s in Operation Tarnegol-53 ("Rooster-53"), transporting paratroopers to Ras-Arab to capture an Egyptian P-12 radar.[3] On January 22, 1970, during Operation Rodus ("Rhodes"), Super Frelons inserted paratroopers onto Shadwan Island, an Egyptian stronghold in the Gulf of Suez, enabling Israeli forces to take the island.[3]

The French arms embargo made it increasingly difficult to maintain the Super Frelon fleet, and the IAF decided in 1968 to acquire the American CH-53, designated the "Yasur" in Israeli service.[2] The first Yasurs entered service with 114 Squadron in 1969 and soon participated in Operation Rooster-53, carrying a captured Soviet radar out of Egyptian territory.[2] The Yasur's cargo capacity and extended range made it suitable for transporting personnel, equipment, vehicles, and heavy loads to distant destinations, and it superseded the Super Frelon as the squadron's main platform.[2]

The Yasur remained in IAF service for more than 50 years and was operated by both 114 and 118 Squadrons. It served as the air force's primary transport helicopter for soldiers and equipment and was used for secret operations, search and rescue, evacuation, and heavy lift.[4][2]

During the Yom Kippur War of October 1973, Super Frelons flew transport and medical-evacuation missions on all fronts and participated in the Israeli crossing of the Suez Canal on October 16.[3] On October 21, Super Frelons and CH-53s airlifted 600 Israeli troops during Operation Kinuah ("Dessert") to retake the Mount Hermon Post and a nearby Syrian position.[3]

In late April 1974, a 114 Squadron Super Frelon crashed while attempting to evacuate casualties from a paratrooper position near the Syrian Hermon, killing all six people aboard.[6][7] The dead were pilots Major Golan Levy and Lieutenant Amir Amit; airborne mechanics Staff Sergeant Yaakov Bernheim and Yaakov Rolle; Unit 669 doctor Major Dr. Ahikam Avni Feinstein; and medic Sergeant Meir Rosenstein. All six were brought to Israel for burial.[8]

In December 2024, after Israeli forces took control of the Syrian Hermon area, Shaldag fighters found the front rotor of Super Frelon number 17 at the crash site. It was brought to Israel for further examination, and the families of the dead were informed.[8]

The Super Frelon was retired in 1991, after also serving during the June 1982 Lebanon invasion, although details of those activities had not been publicly released.[3] The Yasur fleet continued as the backbone of IAF heavy-lift capability, supporting special operations — some of which remain classified — as well as rescues, evacuations, and transportation of soldiers and commanders.[2] The squadron commander described the Yasur as a strategic asset capable of carrying people, equipment, and vehicles over long distances, with the helicopter formation regularly supporting special units beyond enemy lines.[2]

Maintaining the aging fleet presented persistent difficulties. By 2023, the Yasurs in service were more than 50 years old. They had undergone two modernization programs that renewed their engines, avionics, and systems, while their basic airframes remained original.[2] The air force used parts taken from retired helicopters to keep operational aircraft flying and experienced malfunctions that led to emergency landings and temporary groundings of the fleet.[2]

In 2019, a Yasur from 114 Squadron made an emergency landing after an engine fire and then burned completely, without casualties. IAF commander Major General Amikam Norkin grounded the helicopter formation while the incident was investigated.[9] During groundings, personnel could use a Yasur simulator to maintain proficiency and practice malfunctions, emergencies, and operational missions.[9] Over its operational life, the squadron accumulated 31 fallen personnel, according to the figure given by its final commander before the 2023 merger.[2]

Planning for a fleet successor and a reorganization of IAF heavy-lift capability converged in the early 2020s. In 2022, the IAF announced that 114 and 118 Squadrons, both operating Yasurs, would merge during 2023 to strengthen operational and safety capacity and prepare for the CH-53K King Stallion, designated the "Pere" by the IAF.[4][2] Israel agreed to purchase 12 CH-53Ks, with an option for six more, and the IDF stated that operational Yasurs would continue both overt and covert missions during the transition.[10]

The merger was completed in 2023, with 114 Squadron closing in its existing form and its Tel Nof facilities slated for renovation and adaptation for the new aircraft.[2] The unified formation continued Yasur operations under the 118 Squadron banner. Plans called for 114 Squadron to be re-established as the first unit to operate the CH-53K.[4]

Reports published in 2022 expected the helicopters to arrive in 2026, but a February 2026 report said the 12 aircraft were instead expected to enter IDF service in 2028.[4][5] The helicopters were being assembled in Connecticut before the installation of Israeli command-and-control, avionics, computing, electronic-warfare, warning, and missile-defense systems.[5]

As the IAF's first heavy-lift helicopter squadron, 114 Squadron established capabilities that combined conventional transport with long-range assault, rescue, and special operations.[2] Its October 1968 mission carried paratroopers more than 700 kilometers into Egypt without casualties and helped demonstrate the potential of deep helicopter operations.[3] The later introduction of the Yasur expanded the air force's ability to move personnel, vehicles, equipment, and heavy loads over extended distances.[2]

The squadron also connected three generations of Israeli heavy-lift aviation: the Super Frelon, the CH-53 Yasur, and the planned CH-53K Pere. Its 2023 merger was presented not as the permanent end of the unit, but as part of the operational and infrastructural transition to the next aircraft.[4][2]

Sources differ over the date and circumstances of the April 1974 Super Frelon crash. Mako dates it to April 27, while Ynetnews reports April 24.[6][7] Mako describes difficult weather and the main rotor striking a rock. A Ynet account based on remarks delivered to the government by then-Chief of the General Staff Motta Gur says the weather was not especially severe and that the helicopter's tail was struck during a sharp turn on approach.[7][8] The sources agree that the aircraft was on an evacuation mission and that all six crew members died.

The CH-53K acquisition timeline has also shifted. Reports in 2022 anticipated delivery in 2026, while a February 2026 report placed the expected entry into IDF service in 2028.[4][5] The 2022 reporting described the re-establishment of 114 Squadron in 2025 as a plan; the available sources do not confirm that it occurred.[4]