Operation Thunderbolt: Flight 193 And The Raid On Entebbe Airport, The Twentieth Century's Greatest Special Forces Mission, David - B+

          On June 27, 1976, Air France Flight 193 from Tel Aviv to Paris added a stop to its itinerary. Many of the passengers were alarmed when they learned that Athens was now scheduled, as the Greek capital's airport was known for its lax security. Eight minutes after takeoff from Athens, a German who had just boarded took out a pistol and told the pilot to fly to Libya. Two hijackers were German and two Palestinians. Twelve crew and 246 passengers (83 Israelis) were aboard. The plane refueled at Benghazi and took off again later in the day. At 3:20 AM the next day, the Airbus 300 landed in Entebbe, Uganda. It appeared as if the Ugandans were in on the hijacking. Idi Amin, the president for life dictator, was no friend of the Israelis or the West.

       The Israelis started to think through what they could do to rescue people 2,000 miles away. On the third day, the hijackers published their demands for the release of dozens of prisoners, mostly in Israel and W. Germany. On June 30th, forty seven hostages, mostly older or children, were set free and flown to France. Another hundred were freed on the 1st, including non-Israeli Jews. Israel announced it would negotiate with the hijackers, although there was little agreement amongst the cabinet about actually following through. The Israeli Defense Force came up with a plan that involved flying five US built Hercules C 130's to Entebbe and taking out the hijackers. The Israelis were confident that the Ugandans would not fight them. Arrangements were made to refuel for the return in Kenya.  On the second, the Israeli cabinet approved the rescue attempt.

       At 1:40 PM on the afternoon of the 3rd, the planes took off from the Sinai. They flew south over the Red Sea at an altitude of 100 feet. Each plane was two tons over the maximum weight for lift off. They landed a minute after midnight in Entebbe. The lead plane carried a Mercedes and two Land Rovers. The commandos were dressed as Ugandan soldiers. The Mercedes was painted to look just like the one that Idi Amin used. Fifty yards from the terminal, the raid's commander, Lt. Col. Yoni Netanyahu, shot a guard, leading to a machine gun returning fire from the tower. Ironically, Netanyahu, the only special forces casualty, was hit immediately. In less than 10 minutes, the hostages were freed, the hijackers were dead, as were 20 Ugandan soldiers. Three hostages caught in the crossfire were also dead. As an accommodation to the Kenyans, the commandos destroyed the dozen Ugandan MIGs. The Israelis were all back in the air less than two hours after landing.

        The commandos were welcomed and hailed in Israel and considered as important as those who had won Israel's many wars. Their success led to every western nation adopting special anti-terrorist commando units. The author quotes noted British historian Max Hastings at length. "In a world of tragedies and frustrations, few people...have forgotten the great uplift that day gave us. Terror was not invincible. Outrage could be fought and conquered. But only the Israelis...could have displayed the boldness and brilliance to launch and execute such an operation, half a continent away.""With hindsight, that day might also be perceived as the high-water mark of Israel's standing in the world, as a bastion of Western values in the Middle East, and a force for the pursuit of justice and freedom. Thereafter, amid the growing rancor of failed diplomacy, the brutal suppression of Palestinian dissent and the invasion of Lebanon, world sentiment drifted steadily away from support for Israel's policies." This is great read and highly recommended. Thanks to my brother Will for the recommendation.