Israel showed that seizing air superiority isn't gone from modern warfare, but Iran isn't China or Russia
Israel, however, was able to quickly achieve it against Iran.
Iran, though capable, isn't bringing the same fight that a foe like Russia or China could.
Israel swiftly seized air superiority over parts of Iran during the latest fight, showing that it's still possible in modern, higher-end warfare to heavily dominate an enemy's skies.
But there's a risk in taking the wrong lesson from that win. Iran isn't Russia or China, and as the West readies for potential near-peer conflict, it really can't afford to forget that, officials and experts have cautioned.
Western military officials and warfare experts have repeatedly warned in recent years that achieving air superiority against those countries would be a daunting task.
Russia and China, especially the latter, boast sophisticated, integrated air defense networks with ground-based interceptors well supported by capable air forces, electronic warfare, and reliable space-based and airborne intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
Air superiority in a limited theater is not the same as breaking through a complex anti-access, area-denial setup.
Israel's victory in the air war over Iran shows that air superiority is "not impossible" in modern warfare, former Australian Army Maj. Gen. Mick Ryan, a warfare strategist, explained. That said, he continued, a Western conflict with Russia or China would be "very different."
A victory in the air for Israel
Israel attacked nuclear and military sites in Iran in bombing runs and eliminated dozens of Iranian air defense batteries.
Justin Bronk, an airpower expert at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), said it "highlights what you can do with a modern air force against some, on paper, fairly impressive defenses."
Iran maintained a capable layered air defense network featuring domestic systems, foreign-supplied defenses, and some modernized older systems. Though only semi-integrated compared to fully networked air defenses, it presented an obstacle.
Israel dismantled Iranian defenses over multiple engagements through extensive planning, detailed intelligence, and the employment of combat-proven airpower, specifically fifth-generation F-35 stealth fighters built for penetration and suppression of enemy air defenses and fourth-generation F-15s and F-16s, which can also support that mission.
Important to Israel's success in the latest fight with Iran were the engagements last year that substantially weakened Iranian air defense capabilities, as well as Israel's skills in this mission. Failures and aircraft losses in the 1973 Yom Kippur War led it to reevaluate how it approached enemy air defenses, in many ways leading to the emergence of the kind of missions used against Iran.
Ed Arnold, a security expert at RUSI, said that Israel reporting no aircraft losses "was significant, and it just showed that, yeah, you can get air supremacy very quickly." The caveat there is that doing so requires the right tactics, weapons, and intelligence, but even then, it is not guaranteed.
Retired Air Commodore Andrew Curtis, an airfare expert with a 35-year career in the Royal Air Force, told BI "the situation that everybody's been used to over the last 30 years is air supremacy," but when it comes to high-intensity war against a near-peer adverary, realistically, "those days are long gone."
Russia and China
Iran had air defenses, but not airpower. It's air force is largely made up of obsolete Western, Soviet, and Chinese aircraft. The ground-based surface-to-air missile batteries are more capable, but that's only one part of the defensive picture.
Curtis explained that Iran has "very little in the way of air defense aircraft, whereas of course Russia, and especially China, has stacks of them." Both Russia and China field fourth-generation-plus aircraft, as well as fifth-generation fighters.
China, in particular, has multiple fifth-gen fighters in various stages of development, and there are indications it's working on sixth-generation prototypes. By comparison, Iran's air force looks a lot like a plane museum.
But they also boast more advanced and more effective air defenses. Bronk said Russia's defenses are "better networked, more capable, more numerous, and more densely layered than Iran's." He said that if the West rolled back the SAM threat, it would likely be able to overcome Russia's air force, but China is a different story.
China has a complex integrated air defense network supported by ground-based air defenses, naval air defenses, and what Bronk characterized as "an increasingly very capable modern air force," among other capabilities. And China also has a "far greater and more sophisticated missile arsenal for striking bases" to hamstring an enemy's airpower. Additionally, it holds a strong economic position with an industrial base that is turning out high-end weapons.
China has also been tremendously increasing its number of interceptors without really expending any, unlike the US, which has been burning through interceptors in Middle Eastern conflicts.
Not all of China has the same protections, but breaking through defenses would likely represent a substantial challenge in a conflict, especially in something like a Taiwan contingency.
A conflict between the West and China could look like "a more traditional air war" — something not seen in a long time, Curtis said, explaining that air-to-air combat could make a comeback, with pilots again shooting down enemy planes. "In a peer-on-peer conflict, certainly with China, you would see a lot of that, because China has got a lot of air assets."
Future air battles
Achieving air superiority, as Israel did recently and as the US did in the Gulf War in the 1990s and in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan in the 2000s, has been crucial to the Western way of war, often serving as a tool to enable ground maneuvers.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which failed to knock out Ukraine's air defenses, now far more robust than at the start of the war, has shown what a conflict looks like when it isn't achieved. Aircraft are shot out of the sky, and ground forces are locked in grinding slogs. Devastating long-range attacks are still possible, but quick victory is generally not.
It has resulted in some stark warnings for future warfare.
Speaking on air superiority, Gen. James Hecker, the commander of NATO's air command, warned last year that "it's not a given." He added that "if we can't get air superiority, we're going to be doing the fight that's going on in Russia and Ukraine right now."
Other military leaders have said that air superiority may only be achieved in short bursts. War is full of surprises, but evidence indicates that's a real possibility. Achieving
Curtis said air planners now have to focus on specific priorities, like protecting air bases, and figuring out how to achieve a "localized time-bound air superiority or air supremacy in support of a short-term mission or operation."
"It's a different mindset," he said.
The key in future wars will be to seize control of as much of the aerial battlespace as possible to do what's necessary in the moment, all while holding firm defensively, as Israel did against Iran's retaliatory ballistic missile strikes, experts said. That means maintaining a strong air force and strong air defenses.
"Nothing in Ukraine or Israel has shown that air superiority isn't needed in the future," Ryan shared. "I think they've both shown that having air superiority is an extraordinarily important part of warfare and remains so.
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Hamilton Spectator
an hour ago
- Hamilton Spectator
A fragile ceasefire in the Israel-Iran war tests the harmony of Los Angeles' huge Iranian community
LOS ANGELES (AP) — 'Tehrangeles' in West Los Angeles is home to the largest Iranian community outside Iran. This cultural enclave, also known as Little Persia, is where Iranian Muslims, Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians and Bahai have peacefully coexisted for decades. But the recent war between Israel and Iran — a bloody, 12-day conflict paused by a fragile ceasefire — has brought up religious tensions and political debates that rarely surface in this culturally harmonious environment. To complicate matters, the U.S. — an ally of Israel — bombed Iran during the war. Many Iranian Jews in the diaspora have viewed the onset of the war with 'anxious glee,' said Daniel Bral, a West Los Angeles resident whose grandfather, Moossa Bral, was the sole Jewish member of parliament in prerevolutionary Iran. He sees family members and others in the community rejoicing at the possibility of their 'tormentor' being vanquished. But Bral feels differently. 'I'm just nervous and am completely rattled by everything that is happening,' he said. 'I understand and sympathize with people's hope for regime change. But I worry about the safety of civilians and the efficacy of the operation removing Iran as a nuclear threat.' But Bral doesn't see the war itself as a divisive issue in the diaspora because antagonism for the current regime is common across religious groups. 'This hatred for the regime actually unifies Muslims and Jews,' he said. Cultural enclave offers a sense of grounding Kamran Afary, a professor of communication at California State University, Los Angeles, who emigrated from Iran in the 1970s and cowrote a book about identities in Iranian diaspora, said the community, for the most part, has nursed a spirit of tolerance and respect, much like his interfaith family. While Afary is spiritual but not religious, other members of his family practice Judaism, Islam and the Bahai faith. 'Interfaith marriage used to be fraught, but even that is common now,' he said. Afary says for him, Tehrangeles, with its row of grocery stores, ice cream and kebab shops, restaurants, bakeries and bookstores, offers solace and a sense of grounding in his culture and roots. There are about half a million Iranian Americans in the Greater Los Angeles region. The largest wave of Iranians migrated to the area after Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown in 1979 and Ayatollah Khomeini assumed control, establishing the Islamic Republic of Iran. West Los Angeles, in particular, has the largest concentration of Iranian Jews outside Iran. A test for long-held bonds Diane Winston, professor of media and religion at the University of Southern California, said Israel's recent fight against the regime in Iran could test relationships between Iranian Jews and Muslims. 'Muslims, who otherwise would be happy to see regime change, might have felt a little differently about it because their antipathy for Zionism is strong,' she said. Winston also observed that in the diaspora, which is concentrated in wealthy cities like Beverly Hills and Westwood, it is not just religion or culture that brings people together, but also their elevated social status. 'They go to the same schools, parties and cultural events,' she said. 'In general, Iranian Muslims and Jews are not quite as religious as their counterparts back home. Los Angeles is a city where there is room to be orthodox, but also being less religious is not a problem. The less religious Jews and Muslims are, the less antipathy they may have toward each other.' A time of fear and uncertainty Tanaz Golshan was 2 when her family left Iran in 1986. She serves as the senior vice president of Caring for Jews in Need, the Jewish Federation Los Angeles' service arm. She is also the organization's liaison to the Iranian Jewish community. Judaism for Iranians is 'more cultural and familial,' Golshan said. Getting together Friday for Shabbat means having Persian Jewish dishes like 'gondi,' which are dumplings served in soup. 'In my family, we didn't grow up too religious,' she said. 'We don't think about religion when we go to a restaurant or market. You'll find people in both communities that are extreme and don't want anything to do with the other. But in general, we have a lot of love and respect for each other.' And yet this is proving to be a tense and scary time for Iranian Jews in the diaspora, she said. 'What happens globally can affect security locally,' Golshan said, adding the federation's helpline has received calls asking if there are any threats to local Jewish institutions, she said. 'There is real fear that temples and community centers could become targets.' On Monday, Golshan's organization and others hosted more than 350 community members for a virtual event titled, L.A. United: Iranian and Israeli Communities in Solidarity. A call for regime change in Iran Reactions to the war have been nuanced, regardless of religious affiliations. Arezo Rashidian, whose family is Muslim, is a Southern California political activist who favors regime change in Iran. She supports the return of Reza Pahlavi , the exiled son of the shah, who has declared he is ready to lead the country's transition to a democratic government. Rashidian said she has never been able to visit Iran because of her activism. The only hope for her return would be for the current regime to fall. This is why the ceasefire has stirred mixed feelings for her and many others in the community, she said. 'It's been an emotional roller coaster. No one wants a war, but we were on the brink of seeing this regime collapse. We were so close,' she said. Lior Sternfeld, professor of history and Jewish studies at Penn State University, said Iranian Jews in the diaspora identify with Iran, Israel and the U.S., and that these identities are 'often not in harmony.' 'They don't see the Islamic Republic as Iran any more, but an entity to be demolished,' he said. 'They see Israel more as a religious homeland.' President Donald Trump enjoyed strong support in the diaspora and has now upset his backers in the community because he has stated he is not interested in regime change, Sternfeld said. Desire for unity and common ground There is a push, particularly in the younger generation, for peace and understanding among religious groups in the diaspora. Bral says he is engaged in peacebuilding work through his writing and advocacy. 'We are cousins at the end of the day, as clichéd and corny as that sounds,' he said. Bral's friend Rachel Sumekh, whose parents emigrated from Iran, grew up Jewish in the San Fernando Valley. Sumekh hosts dinner parties with her diverse group of friends as a way of widening her circle across religious lines. In December, she hosted a gathering for Yalda, an ancient Persian festival with Zoroastrian roots, which is observed on the winter solstice as celebrants look forward to brighter days. Last year, Yalda, which also marks the victory of light over darkness, coincided with Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights. 'We created a new tradition bringing people of both traditions together to emphasize how much we have in common,' Sumekh said. 'This war is just a reminder that as much as our day-to-day lives may be separate, there is still a lot we share in terms of culture and as a people.' ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. 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San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
A fragile ceasefire in the Israel-Iran war tests the harmony of Los Angeles' huge Iranian community
LOS ANGELES (AP) — 'Tehrangeles" in West Los Angeles is home to the largest Iranian community outside Iran. This cultural enclave, also known as Little Persia, is where Iranian Muslims, Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians and Bahai have peacefully coexisted for decades. But the recent war between Israel and Iran — a bloody, 12-day conflict paused by a fragile ceasefire — has brought up religious tensions and political debates that rarely surface in this culturally harmonious environment. To complicate matters, the U.S. — an ally of Israel — bombed Iran during the war. Many Iranian Jews in the diaspora have viewed the onset of the war with 'anxious glee,' said Daniel Bral, a West Los Angeles resident whose grandfather, Moossa Bral, was the sole Jewish member of parliament in prerevolutionary Iran. He sees family members and others in the community rejoicing at the possibility of their 'tormentor' being vanquished. But Bral feels differently. 'I'm just nervous and am completely rattled by everything that is happening,' he said. 'I understand and sympathize with people's hope for regime change. But I worry about the safety of civilians and the efficacy of the operation removing Iran as a nuclear threat.' But Bral doesn't see the war itself as a divisive issue in the diaspora because antagonism for the current regime is common across religious groups. 'This hatred for the regime actually unifies Muslims and Jews,' he said. Cultural enclave offers a sense of grounding Kamran Afary, a professor of communication at California State University, Los Angeles, who emigrated from Iran in the 1970s and cowrote a book about identities in Iranian diaspora, said the community, for the most part, has nursed a spirit of tolerance and respect, much like his interfaith family. While Afary is spiritual but not religious, other members of his family practice Judaism, Islam and the Bahai faith. 'Interfaith marriage used to be fraught, but even that is common now,' he said. Afary says for him, Tehrangeles, with its row of grocery stores, ice cream and kebab shops, restaurants, bakeries and bookstores, offers solace and a sense of grounding in his culture and roots. There are about half a million Iranian Americans in the Greater Los Angeles region. The largest wave of Iranians migrated to the area after Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown in 1979 and Ayatollah Khomeini assumed control, establishing the Islamic Republic of Iran. West Los Angeles, in particular, has the largest concentration of Iranian Jews outside Iran. A test for long-held bonds Diane Winston, professor of media and religion at the University of Southern California, said Israel's recent fight against the regime in Iran could test relationships between Iranian Jews and Muslims. 'Muslims, who otherwise would be happy to see regime change, might have felt a little differently about it because their antipathy for Zionism is strong," she said. Winston also observed that in the diaspora, which is concentrated in wealthy cities like Beverly Hills and Westwood, it is not just religion or culture that brings people together, but also their elevated social status. 'They go to the same schools, parties and cultural events,' she said. 'In general, Iranian Muslims and Jews are not quite as religious as their counterparts back home. Los Angeles is a city where there is room to be orthodox, but also being less religious is not a problem. The less religious Jews and Muslims are, the less antipathy they may have toward each other.' A time of fear and uncertainty Tanaz Golshan was 2 when her family left Iran in 1986. She serves as the senior vice president of Caring for Jews in Need, the Jewish Federation Los Angeles' service arm. She is also the organization's liaison to the Iranian Jewish community. Judaism for Iranians is 'more cultural and familial,' Golshan said. Getting together Friday for Shabbat means having Persian Jewish dishes like 'gondi,' which are dumplings served in soup. 'In my family, we didn't grow up too religious,' she said. 'We don't think about religion when we go to a restaurant or market. You'll find people in both communities that are extreme and don't want anything to do with the other. But in general, we have a lot of love and respect for each other.' And yet this is proving to be a tense and scary time for Iranian Jews in the diaspora, she said. 'What happens globally can affect security locally,' Golshan said, adding the federation's helpline has received calls asking if there are any threats to local Jewish institutions, she said. 'There is real fear that temples and community centers could become targets." On Monday, Golshan's organization and others hosted more than 350 community members for a virtual event titled, L.A. United: Iranian and Israeli Communities in Solidarity. A call for regime change in Iran Reactions to the war have been nuanced, regardless of religious affiliations. Arezo Rashidian, whose family is Muslim, is a Southern California political activist who favors regime change in Iran. She supports the return of Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the shah, who has declared he is ready to lead the country's transition to a democratic government. Rashidian said she has never been able to visit Iran because of her activism. The only hope for her return would be for the current regime to fall. This is why the ceasefire has stirred mixed feelings for her and many others in the community, she said. 'It's been an emotional roller coaster. No one wants a war, but we were on the brink of seeing this regime collapse. We were so close," she said. Lior Sternfeld, professor of history and Jewish studies at Penn State University, said Iranian Jews in the diaspora identify with Iran, Israel and the U.S., and that these identities are 'often not in harmony.' 'They don't see the Islamic Republic as Iran any more, but an entity to be demolished," he said. "They see Israel more as a religious homeland.' President Donald Trump enjoyed strong support in the diaspora and has now upset his backers in the community because he has stated he is not interested in regime change, Sternfeld said. Desire for unity and common ground There is a push, particularly in the younger generation, for peace and understanding among religious groups in the diaspora. Bral says he is engaged in peacebuilding work through his writing and advocacy. 'We are cousins at the end of the day, as clichéd and corny as that sounds,' he said. Bral's friend Rachel Sumekh, whose parents emigrated from Iran, grew up Jewish in the San Fernando Valley. Sumekh hosts dinner parties with her diverse group of friends as a way of widening her circle across religious lines. In December, she hosted a gathering for Yalda, an ancient Persian festival with Zoroastrian roots, which is observed on the winter solstice as celebrants look forward to brighter days. Last year, Yalda, which also marks the victory of light over darkness, coincided with Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights. 'We created a new tradition bringing people of both traditions together to emphasize how much we have in common,' Sumekh said. 'This war is just a reminder that as much as our day-to-day lives may be separate, there is still a lot we share in terms of culture and as a people.'
American Military News
an hour ago
- American Military News
Skies calm over Israel, Iran as truce appears to hold after tumultuous start
This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission. The skies over Israel and Iran appeared calm as the second day of a cease-fire brokered by US President Donald Trump appeared to be holding after a shaky beginning. Israeli authorities early on June 25 lifted most war-related restrictions on civilians, hours after a fuming US President Donald lashed out at both sides for violating the cease-fire he had announced late on June 23, calling for calm as what he labeled the '12-day war' appeared to come to an end. The Israeli military's Home Front Command said the decision to ease restrictions was made after the latest security assessment. The move will allow schools to restart in-room classes and will permit gatherings across most of the nation without limitations, although some of those related to the Gaza conflict will remain in place. Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian, meanwhile, said his country was ready to return to a normal existence as the cease-fire took hold. Pezeshkian, in a national TV address, said, 'Starting today, the government and relevant institutions will begin reconstruction and restore normalcy.' He described Israel's actions as a 'terrorist attack' that came at a time when Iran was seeking a diplomatic dialogue with the United States. After rockets and air strikes launched by both sides caused severe damages and major casualties as the 7 a.m. start of the cease-fire approached on June 24 — and after the deadline as well — Trump reacted angrily toward the conflict participants. Taking questions as he prepared to leave Washington for a NATO summit at The Hague, Trump hit out against ally Israel over reports it was again striking targets inside the territory of its archenemy despite an agreement to hold fire. 'They [the Iranians] violated it, but Israel violated it, too,' Trump said. He added,' I'm not happy with Israel.' Later, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said he told US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth that his country would respect the cease-fire unless Iran violated it. Pezeshkian likewise said Iran would honor the cease-fire as long as Israel did, according to Iranian media. The Trump announcement on the cease-fire came after Iran fired missiles at the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar on June 23, causing no damage or injuries. Trump said Tehran had given Washington prior notice of the attack — a move many analysts said indicated Iran was not looking to escalate the crisis after US forces had struck multiple Iranian nuclear facilities on June 21. Trump has said US forces 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear sites, although questions remain about the magnitude of damage caused to the overall nuclear program, with US media citing intelligence sources as saying Iranian development had been set back only a few months. The White House denied the reports. In a Truth Social posting late on June 24, Trump reiterated those remarks, saying, 'The nuclear sites in Iran are completely destroyed!' The chief of the Israeli military's general staff, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, on June 24 said that 'we've set Iran's nuclear project back years, and the same applies to its missile program.' The conflict broke out after Israel on June 13 launched massive waves of air strikes against Iranian nuclear and military sites, killing many top commanders — mainly from the hard-line Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — and nuclear scientists. Iran retaliated with barrages of missiles and drones targeting Israeli cities. Israel, the United States, and other Western nations have been adamant that Iran will not be allowed to development nuclear weapons. Tehran says its nuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes. Amid the cease-fire, the French ambassador to the United Nations said European nations were prepared to reactivate sanctions on Tehran if an agreement were not reached soon on its nuclear program. Jerome Bonnnafont told a Security Council meeting that 'we expect Iran to return to talks without delay in order to achieve a robust, verifiable, and lasting diplomatic solution.' Iran's Pezeshkian — considered by many to be a relative moderate among the more hard-line rulers — indicated his country was willing to resume nuclear talks. Speaking by phone with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Pezeshkian said Iran's was ready to resolve differences with the United States 'within the framework of international norms,' according to the president's office. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a nationally televised address, warned Iran that if attempted to rebuild its nuclear program, Israel would return to military action against the country. He said Israel had achieved 'a historic victory' and destroyed Iran's nuclear program over the 12 days but that it stood ready to 'act with the same determination and the same force to cut off any such attempt [at restoration].' Despite the cease-fire, tensions remained high in the Middle East. The Israeli military on June 25 said six soldiers had been killed in Gaza, where its forces are still battling against fighters from the Iran-allied Hamas militant group, which has been declared a terrorist organization by the United States and UN. Further details were not immediately available. And in Iran, the country's judiciary news agency Mizan reported that three men had been executed for allegedly 'spying for Israel' in the northwestern Iranian city of Urmia. 'The sentence was carried out this morning…they were hanged,' the judiciary said. The Iranian government, which has long been accused of rights violation by activists and Western leaders, executed at least 975 people in 2024, up from 843 the previous year, according to a recent UN report. Human Rights Watch, in a report last month, said that 'Iranian authorities are carrying out a horrific execution spree, with at least 113 reported executions in the first 25 days of May 2025 alone.' On May 28, Iran said it has executed Pedram Madani, who was accused of 'spying for Israel' in a case human rights groups said was filled with 'fundamental flaws' and based on confessions made under duress.
