'Next mission waiting for you': What Israel's Air Force commander told F-35 pilot who shot down Iranian jet over Tehran

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday released a recording of a conversation between its commander and an F-35I “Adir” pilot who, it said, shot down a manned Iranian fighter jet over Tehran, as the Middle East conflict entered its sixth day.

“The historic shootdown over Tehran’s skies is a testament to the strength of the Air Force and your personal determination. The next mission is already waiting for you,’ a voice believed to be that of IAF chief Major General Tomer Bar is heard telling the pilot in Hebrew.



The recording was published hours after the IAF announced that the F-35I "Adir," a US-origin fighter, has shot down a Russian-made Yak-130 jet of the Iran Air Force.



This is reportedly the first time an F-35 “Adir” fighter has shot down a manned combat aircraft.




According to The Times of Israel, the incident also marked the Israeli Air Force's first aerial combat with an enemy manned fighter jet in around 40 years.

The last time IAF jets downed a manned enemy aircraft was on November 24, 1985, over Lebanon, when an F-15 shot down two Syrian MiG-23 fighters.

The IAF is expected to mark the F-35I with a “victory mark,” a small decal on the side of the aircraft signifying the pilot’s and plane’s achievement.

It would potentially be the first time in nearly two decades that the force has added such a mark to a fighter jet.

In 2007, the military added similar markings to aircraft that took part in strikes on Syria’s nuclear reactor in a mission widely known as Operation Orchard and referred to within the Israeli military as “Outside the Box.”