Air Battle of El Mansoura

Air battle of Mansoura

Date	October 14, 1973
Location	Nile Delta, Egypt
Result	Egyptian victory. Attack repelled, no air bases were destroyed.

Belligerents

Egypt

Israel

Commanders and leaders

Hosni Mubarak (EAF)
Ahmed Abdel Rahman Nasser (No. 104 Wing)

Benny Peled (IAF)

Strength

62 MiG-21 aircraft

160 F-4 Phantom II and A-4 Skyhawk aircraft

Casualties and losses

6 aircraft lost and 2 pilots killed in total:
- 3 aircraft shot down
- 3 aircraft crashed for fuel shortage

17 aircraft shot down (Egyptian claim).

2 aircraft shot down (Israeli claim).

17 aircraft shot down (Egyptian claim).

The air battle of Mansoura was the Egyptian name for an air battle that took place during the Yom Kippur War between the Egyptian Air Force (EAF) and the Israeli Air Force (IAF) near the town of El Mansoura, in the Nile Delta.

The Israeli air force launched air strikes on October 14 against the Egyptian air bases at Tanta and Mansoura. Israeli aircraft were spotted approaching from the Mediterranean Sea. The 104th Air Wing of the Egyptian air force scrambled its fighters, receiving additional reinforcements from other air bases. The air battle began at 15:15 and lasted 53 minutes. The Egyptian commander was Hosni Mubarak. According to Egyptian sources, multiple Israeli fighters were shot down; this is disputed by Israeli sources.

The 104th Air Wing had three squadrons equipped with MiG-21MF fighters; two squadrons were stationed at Mansoura, tasked with interception and air defense, and the third was stationed at the Tanta air base to defend both air bases. The IAF had made several attacks on the Mansoura air base from October 6 onwards, but failed due to dense Egyptian SAM defenses.

At dawn on October 14, when Egyptian forces made their advance towards the Sinai Mitla and Gedy Passes, the ground forces were given ground support by MiG-17s, Su-7s, Su-20s and Mirage III fighter bombers. These in turn were given fighter cover by the 104th's MiG-21s. Although the Egyptian offensive on October 14 was a failure and culminated in heavy losses, the IAF was determined to destroy the 104th Air Wing's capabilities. A massive air strike would be launched against air bases in Salihiya, Mansoura and Tanta.

In the aftermath of the Six Day War, when the EAF lost almost all its aircraft on the ground to an Israeli preemptive strike, the Egyptians constructed 500 concrete shelters on 20 major airbases to prevent the aircraft from being destroyed on the ground in a future conflict.

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Wikipedia