Palavir
Aerial service of Haganah's Palmach force
title: "Palavir" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["israeli-air-force", "irregular-military-air-services", "haganah-units"] description: "Aerial service of Haganah's Palmach force" topic_path: "geography/israel" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palavir" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Aerial service of Haganah's Palmach force ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox military unit"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| unit_name | Palavir |
| country | Israel |
| type | Air force |
| branch | Haganah |
| dates | 1943-1947 |
| specialization | Aerial reconnaissance |
| Aerial warfare | |
| Close air support | |
| size | 8 pilots |
| notable_commanders | Pinchas Ben-Porat, 1944 |
| :: |
|unit_name=Palavir |country= Israel |allegiance= |type= Air force |branch= Haganah |dates=1943-1947 |specialization= Aerial reconnaissance Aerial warfare Close air support |command_structure= |size= 8 pilots |nickname= |motto= |mascot= |notable_commanders= Pinchas Ben-Porat, 1944
The Palavir, an acronym for Plugat HaAvir (, Air Companies) was the air force for the Palmach, based in Tel Aviv. Little is known about the Palmach's flying platoon due to its short life and its secrecy during the British Mandate. Like the rest of the Palmach it was made up entirely of Jewish fighters.
History
In 1945, the Palavir was developed as Palmach's air division. The Palavir fell under the command of the unofficial Jewish defense force Haganah and operated prior to the establishment of the State of Israel. The Palmach's naval branch, Palyam, was also created in the same year. In 1943 the Palmach sent 3 of its fighters to be trained at the Jewish Agency-owned flying school, Aviron flying school, in kibbutz Afikim. Later, the Palavir sent six more fighters. In 1947, the Palavir and aeroclub were reorganized into the Sherut Avir which benefited from the return of Jewish soldiers who had been fighting in the Jewish Brigade of the British Army. In 1948 the Sherut Avir became the Heil HaAvir or Israeli Air Force. Also with the independence in 1948 the Palestine Flying Club was renamed the Israel Aero Club.
Contribution
The 'Palavir' acquired its first aircraft, the de Havilland D.H.82C Tiger Moth in 1936 when the Yishuv leader, David Ben-Gurion, managed to purchase one from Britain. The plane's purchase was difficult due to resistance by the British government which feared that an independent Jewish force might encourage a similar Arab force. It was flown in by a British flight instructor named Grey and registered under the marks G-ACYN, with serial number 3314. Later, in 1947, two Tiger Moths from Canada were acquired as donations to a Jewish aeroclub. The same year, Aviron flying school moved out of Afikim and Ramla to Lod Airport. For the remainder of *Palavir'''s existence, it began to operate out of Haifa further north, enabling the Tiger Moths to photograph Syrian army camps in the Golan.
Known pilots
References
References
- [http://101squadron.com/101real/people.html Pinchas Ben-Porat] 101 Squadron Pilots
- [http://www.historama.com/online-resources/idf-israel-defense-forces-tzahal/idf_israel_defense_forces_foundations.html A brief history of the foundations of the Israeli Defense Forces] Historama
- However, in 1943 the British outlawed the [[Haganah]] and [[Palmach]]. In response, both organizations went underground. The ''Palavir'' disguised itself as an aeroclub called ''Palestine Flying Club'' and continued to train until 1947. The ''Palavir'' pilots also operated out of [[Ramla]] airport.{{dubious. No trace of a Ramla airport on the Net. Probably meant: Lydda airport near Ramla, but who knows?. (December 2017[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Society_&_Culture/tigermoth.html de Havilland D.H.82C Tiger Moth] Jewish Virtual Library)
- link. (2009-07-05)
- {{usurped
- (March 2018)
- The fact that the ''Palavir'' was created together with the [[Palmach]] and [[Palyam]] meant that it was born from the same soldiers and structure. Palmachniks would often interchange leadership positions between these branches. This culture continues in the [[Israel Defense Forces. IDF]] today, where the military's branches contrast the strict cultural divides that many militaries have developed (i.e. between the Navy and the Army). In Israel the [[Israeli Air Force. IAF]] and the rest of the [[Israel Defense Forces. IDF]] are very much intertwined in history, culture, and operation.Van Creveld, Martin (2002) ''The Sword and the Olive: A critical history of the Israeli Defense Force'' PublicAffairs, New York
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