A peak inside the Israeli Air Force unit that trains Luftwaffe aircrews to operate the Heron

Since 2019, the “Red Baron” squadron in the Israeli Air Force has been training Luftwaffe aircrews on operating the Heron using Eitans operated by the 210th squadron.

Photo: Israeli Air Force

The “Red Baron” is the only non-Israeli Air Force unit operating in the country.

“The course has two stages. The first of which is the basic stage, where crewmembers learn how to take off, land, and operate in states of emergency. They fly around the base in determined flight paths”, the commander of the squadron was quoted as saying. “The second stage is the advanced stage where teams are involved in operational execution, flight, behavior, and teamwork between crew members. They practice operational scenarios and execute emergency flights in the flight simulator”.

Recently, the 11th conversion course was completed with 12 crew members.

The next step of the training will use Germany’s own aircraft.