Israel says an F-35 shot down an Iranian jet in air-to-air combat, a first for the stealth fighter

"An F-35I "Adir" shot down an Iranian Air Force Yak-130 over Tehran, marking its "first shootdown in history of a manned fighter aircraft," the Israeli military said in a statement on Wednesday. Lockheed Martin's F-35 Lightning II entered service in 2015 and is operated by around a dozen countries, including Israel, which fields its own variant of the fighter jet called the "Adir.""

"The F-35 has intercepted missiles and drones in combat in the Middle East, but it had never shot down a crewed jet - until now. The incident also marks the first time in more than 40 years that Israeli fighters have downed a crewed enemy aircraft."

"The Yakovlev Yak-130, which NATO calls the "Mitten," is a subsonic twin-seater light combat aircraft that also serves as a training jet. Russia has built hundreds of these planes, which entered service in 2010. Several have been delivered to Iran."

An Israeli F-35I "Adir" achieved a historic milestone by shooting down an Iranian Air Force Yak-130 over Tehran, representing the first time the stealth fighter has destroyed a crewed aircraft in air-to-air combat. The F-35 Lightning II, operated by approximately a dozen countries since entering service in 2015, had previously logged kills against missiles and drones but never manned aircraft. This incident also marks the first crewed aircraft shootdown by Israeli fighters in over 40 years. The Yak-130 is a subsonic twin-seater light combat and training aircraft built by Russia and operated by Iran. Israeli F-35s are conducting operations alongside US and British F-35s in the Middle East.

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