Iai Kfir
The IAI Kfir was Israel’s locally developed fighter based on the French Mirage 5 airframe but powered by an American General Electric J79 engine. Fitting the larger engine required redesigned air intakes and later small canards, giving the Kfir a distinctive appearance. Israel used it as a fast strike fighter, and several were later leased to the US Navy as aggressor aircraft. The type shows how Israel adapted an embargoed European design into a capable indigenous combat aircraft.
Did you know?
'Kfir' is Hebrew for 'lion cub', the name Israel gave the fighter that succeeded its earlier Nesher, a locally-built copy of the French Mirage 5.
Specifications
| Length | 15.7 m (51 ft) |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 8.2 m (27 ft) |
| Height | 4.6 m (15 ft) |
| Persons on board | 1 |
| Crew | 1 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 16.5 t |
| Range | 700 NM (1,296 km) |
| Maximum speed | 1,270 kt (2,352 km/h) |
| Service ceiling | 58,000 ft (17,678 m) |
| Rate of climb | 45,930 ft/min (233.3 m/s) |
| Take-off distance | 750 m (2,461 ft) |
| Engines | 1x General Electric J79-J1E |
| Units built | 185 |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
In CatchFlights
In CatchFlights the Iai Kfir starts as a Legendary catch. The tier is an editorial judgement of how special a sighting of this type is. The more often you catch it, the closer it moves to Common for you. The first catch of a legendary type pays a bonus of its own.
A catch counts for the manufacturer Iai, the Kfir family and the model in your collection, and the daily Type Rating quiz asks about the types of each family.
Catch it yourself.CatchFlights shows the aircraft flying near you on a radar, so a type like this one is only a catch away when it passes overhead. Explore CatchFlights.
Browse all aircraft types, or learn to tell Airbus from Boeing.