The 3 Big Lessons for US Air Power from Israel’s War on Iran (From National Security Journal)

The full text of this article is available below and on the National Security Journal website here.

Key Points – The ongoing “Operation Rising Lion,” where Israel’s largely US-made air force is systematically dismantling Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure, offers three critical lessons for the United States.

-First, it proves the enduring value of investing in first-rate, manned airpower (fighters and bombers) capable of precision strikes to dismantle sophisticated air defenses. Second, it provides invaluable real-world tactical lessons for US pilots on how to engage modern threats like drone swarms.

-Finally, it serves as a stark warning that the US must urgently improve its own missile defenses, particularly for forward bases, to counter the types of mass missile barrages Iran has launched against Israel.

Why Manned Fighters & Bombers Still Rule the Skies: Lessons from Iran

President Donald J. Trump has put out the call for U.S. airpower.

For all the talk of drones and AI, the crisis with Iran proved yet again that manned fighters and bombers are America’s number one option for global containment.

Airpower set the conditions for Operation Rising Lion. The Israeli air force was able to target Iran as a result of meticulous work to take out Russian-built air defenses.

The destruction of surface-to-air missiles began in earnest in 2024, opening with a strike on a “Tombstone” long-range surveillance and target acquisition radar tied to an S-300 battery in Esfahan.

In the strikes of October 26, 2024, Israel hit four S-300s that had been purchased from Russia in 2016. Other targets included radar sites and air defenses at the Bandar Imam Khomeini port and petrochemical plant. A factory for solid-fueled ballistic missile motors was also struck, adding up to a miniature air campaign that began to pry open Iran’s air defenses and yielded significant data on Iran’s response time.

Iran Feels the Pain

Beginning June 13, 2025, Operation Rising Lion has centered around the capabilities of Israel’s largely U.S.-made air forces.

F-16s, F-35s and the venerable F-15s have opened up the skies over Iran.  That enabled a complex campaign targeting Iran’s air defenses, nuclear sites, ballistic missile and drone production, and some of Iran’s mobile missile launchers. Israel has used precision weapons ranging from the satellite-guided JDAM to the newer Small Diameter Bomb.

“We now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran,” Trump posted on Truth Social on June 17.  “Iran had good sky trackers and other defensive equipment, and plenty of it, but it doesn’t compare to American made, conceived, and manufactured ‘stuff.’  Nobody does it better than the good ol’ USA.”

Lessons Learned for the U.S. Air Force

Iran may not pose a level of threat comparable to China. But the principal lesson is the same.  Precision targeting is still the most effective means for taking out a hostile target set. Airpower, and plenty of it, is the most effective tool in a crisis.

The U.S. Air Force and Navy have been trolling Iran’s air defenses for years. Deployment of stealth F-22s and F-35s in particular spooked Iran. Beyond this, the U.S. has highly specialized airpower capabilities in the form of the F-22 stealth fighter, the B-2, B-52 and B-1B Lancer bombers, and a deep bench of KC-135 and KC-46 aerial refueling tankers.

Don’t forget the aircraft carriers. Each carrier airwing can deliver literally thousands of weapons, and the U.S. has frequently kept two on station in the North Arabian Gulf over the past year.

3 Big Takeaways 

Operation Rising Lion holds three immediate lessons for the U.S. First, it has proven the value of precision targeting and the doctrinal importance of dismantling air defenses.  Israel has been able to take on Iran’s nuclear menace because of investment in first-rate airpower and the flying hours for aircrews to hone their skills.

The U.S. has skimped on buying new fighters and bombers for years, so let this be a warning.  The U.S. needs more F-35s, the F-47, the Navy’s secret new carrier-based plane. Collaborative drones of all types mightily assist but cannot yet replace manned aircraft.

Second, U.S. airmen are already picking up tactical lessons from the duel with Iran. For example, F-15E crews described spotting the waves of 30 Iranian drones heading west for Israel on the night of April 13, 2024. “I first get hit with dread, recognizing the numbers we were seeing,” Maj. Benjamin Irish” Coffey told Air and Space Forces Magazine.

Assigned to defend their airspace lanes, U.S. F-15E and F-16 aircrews soon found themselves rotating into firing positions surging to knock out low-level one-way attack drones heading for Israel.  An after-action report on how to engage drones soon became required reading for U.S. pilots. Operation Rising Lion will hold additional lessons.

Third, the U.S. does not enjoy anything like the level of missile defense that is allowing Israel to ride out Iran’s attacks.  While the Pentagon pursues Golden Dome, the Israeli air campaign against Iran is also a warning that the U.S. must get its act together on forward base defense.

The U.S. remains the only major power where the Army, not the Air Force, is assigned the air defense mission.

China Should Be Watching

The barrages against Israel are a foreshadowing of the type of attacks China might seek to launch against U.S. and allied bases. The U.S. has the technology to defend and fight – the job now is to make sure roles and missions don’t get in the way.

America’s investment in airpower has long backed up containment of terrible threats.  With Iran, airpower has come through yet again.