Munir Redfa
Munir Redfa | |
|---|---|
منير ردفا | |
 | |
| Born | Munir Habib Jamil Rufa 1934 Baghdad,Iraq |
| Died | 1998 |
| Nationality | Iraqi |
| Occupation | Fighter pilot |
CaptainMunir Redfa(Arabic:منير ردفا,Syriac:ܡܘܢܝܪ ܪܕܦܐ), bornMunir Habib Jamil Rufa(Arabic:منير حبيب جميل روفا,Syriac:ܡܘܢܝܪ ܚܒܝܒ ܓܡܝܠ ܪܘܦܐ) (1934 –c.1998[1]) was anIraqifighter pilot. AfterQasim'scoup,Redfa was one of only five pilots the new regime trusted to continue serving with the sole Iraqi unit operating theMikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21,11th Squadron.[2]
Redfadefectedin 1966 in "Operation Diamond",flying a MiG-21 of theIraqi Air Forceto Israel. In what is considered one of theMossad's most successful operations, Redfa's entire extended family was smuggled safely out of Iraq to Israel. The MiG-21 fighter was evaluated by theIsraeli Air Forceand was later loaned to theUnited Statesfor testing and intelligence analysis, as part of "Have Doughnut".Knowledge obtained from analysis of the aircraft was instrumental to the successes achieved by the Israeli Air Force in its future encounters with Arab MiG-21s.[1]Redfa's defection was the subject of the movieSteal the Sky(1988).
Redfa was an Assyrian, adherent of theChaldean Catholic Church.
Redfa died of a heart attack around 1998.[1]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^abcReuven Weiss (May 29, 2007)."The Blue Bird legend".YNet News..
- ^Tom Cooper,In 1966, Israeli Intelligence Convinced an Iraqi Pilot to Defect with His MiG-21 Fighter,The National Interest, 2016.
External links
[edit]- Stealing a Soviet MiG,Jewish Virtual Library.