A massive joint air campaign by the United States and Israel is dismantling Irans missile network in what officials and analysts describe as one of the most coordinated allied operations in modern warfare.
Secretary of War said the campaign is rapidly establishing dominance over Iranian skies.Â
“Starting last night and to be completed in a few days ⦠the two most powerful air forces in the world will have complete control of Iranian skies,” Hegseth said Wednesday. “Uncontested airspace.”Â
“We will fly all day, all night ⦠flying over Tehran, flying over Iran, flying over their capital⦠Iranian leaders are looking up and seeing only U.S. and Israeli air power every minute of every day until we decide its over.”
Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview Tuesday that “the cooperation between us and the American military is amazing. We have mutual planning and mutual executing for the plans in Iran and beyond.”
John Spencer, executive director of the Urban Warfare Institute, told Fox News Digital the U.S. militarys opening airpower surge.Â
“Israel matched the United States in the number of aircraft in the air,” Spencer said. “For Israel, that represents roughly 80% of its air force capability.”
He added that the level of coordination between Washington and Jerusalem represents a new model for allied warfare.Â
“This isnt separate work,” Spencer said. “This is combined work. Integrated, synchronized operations combining powers.”Â
“In the past weve had coalitions of dozens of countries,” Spencer said. “But having a partner that is both willing and capable of bringing immense capabilities like this is very rare.”
The Israeli campaign, known as Operation Roaring Lion, began with roughly 200 fighter jets launching the largest coordinated air operation in the history of the Israeli Air Force.Â
Within the first 24 hours of the campaign, Israeli fighter jets already had opened a corridor allowing sustained operations over Tehran, according to the Israeli military.
Israeli aircraft struck systems across western and central Iran in an opening wave targeting hundreds of sites simultaneously using intelligence gathered by Israels Intelligence Directorate and the CIA.
In the dropped hundreds of munitions on approximately 500 targets, including missile launchers, command centers and air defense batteries.
The opening strike achieved a level of surprise rarely seen in modern warfare, according to Israeli intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder.Â
“In 40 seconds, we eliminated more than 40 of the most important people in Iran,” Binder said, referring to senior regime and military officials, including Iran Supreme Leader . “We are sending a clear message to our enemies â there is no place where we will not find them.”
Spencer said the strategy behind the opening strike represents a dramatic shift in modern warfare.Â
“What Israel did in this opening campaign just wasnt imaginable in the history of war. It never happened,” he said. “To start off by cutting off the brain⦠usually you target the military first. Here they targeted the political and military leadership and had the ability to wipe them out in a matter of hours.”
Spencer, a veteran of the 2003 Iraq War, said the operation reflects advances in intelligence and strike capabilities.Â
“I was part of the invasion in 2003,” he said. “Something like this was unthinkable even 20 years ago.”
An IDF spokesperson announced Wednesday what he described as a historic milestone: an Israeli Air Force F-35 fighter jet shot down an Iranian aircraft, marking the first time anywhere in the world that an F-35 has downed a manned aircraft and the first time in 40 years that an Israeli aircraft has shot down an enemy aircraft in combat.
Since the start of the operation, Israeli aircraft have carried out
