View source for Operation Model 5

{{Short description|1973 battle of the Yom Kippur War}}
{{Infobox military conflict
|conflict=Operation Model 5
|place=[[Golan Heights]]
|date=7 October 1973
|partof=[[Yom Kippur War]]
|result=Syrian victory
|combatant1={{flag|Israel}}
|combatant2={{Flag|Syria|1972}}<!-- Egypt, Syria and Libya all had the same flag in 1972, see [[Flag of Syria]] (historical section) and [[:Image:Syria-flag-changes.svg]] and the current flag was introduced in 1980 -->
|commander1=[[Benny Peled]]
|commander2=
|strength1=Unknown aircraft
|strength2=Unknown missile batteries
|casualties1=2 killed<br>9 captured<br>6 aircraft destroyed<br>6 aircraft damaged
|casualties2=1 missile battery [[SA-3]] destroyed <br>1 missile battery [[SA-2]] damaged
}} 
{{Campaignbox Yom Kippur War}}
'''Operation Model 5''' ([[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]: דוגמן 5, ''Doogman 5'') is the name of an [[Israeli Air Force]] operation, and the common name for the ensuing [[anti-aircraft combat|anti-aircraft battle]], which took place over the [[Golan Heights]] on the October 7, 1973, the second day of the [[Yom Kippur War]].

''Model 5'' was preplanned as a sweeping operation to destroy all of the Syrian [[surface-to-air missile]] (SAM) batteries on the Golan front, by using unguided, general-use bombs dropped from a medium altitude near the targets. The attacking aircraft were to approach the targets at a very low altitude, in order to avoid being detected by Syrian radars (especially [[fire control radars|fire control]] and target acquisition radars such as the [[P-15 radar|Flat Face]] and [[P-40 radar|Long Track]]).

Due to a lack of updated [[military intelligence|intelligence]] and reliance on outdated [[IMINT]], while suffering from an underdeveloped [[ELINT]]–[[electronic support measures|ESM]] capability, the Israeli aircraft did not find their targets, as these SAM batteries had already moved to other locations.

The outcome of ''Model 5'' was catastrophic for the attacking force: six [[F-4 Phantom]] aircraft were lost over Syria and several others were damaged but returned to [[Ramat David Israeli Air Force Base|Ramat David]]. Most of the damaged aircraft were hit by [[ZSU-23-4]] [[air defense artillery]] guns, which were especially deadly due to the sorties' very low altitude. Two crewmen were killed and nine captured by the Syrians, for the destruction of but a single Syrian SAM battery.

Stunned by their difficulties in suppressing enemy air defenses in both fronts of the Yom Kippur War and the resulting degradation in the effectiveness of the Israeli Air Force, the Israelis spent the years following the war developing a comprehensive strategy to deal with the [[Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses|suppression of enemy air defenses]]. These efforts culminated in their engagement of the Syrians 9 years later in [[Operation Mole Cricket 19]], where they were able to, for the first time in history, destroy an entire Soviet-made SAM network in a matter of hours.

==See also==
*[[Yom Kippur War]]
*[[F-4 Phantom]]
*[[A-4 Skyhawk]]

==External links==
{{no footnotes|date=November 2015}}
*[http://www.fresh.co.il/vBulletin/showthread.php?t=113259#post686796 פרדוקס ה-7 באוקטובר (Hebrew)]

{{coord missing|Israel}}

[[Category:Battles of the Yom Kippur War]]
[[Category:Aerial operations and battles involving Israel]]


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