Modi Alon
| Mordechai "Modi" Alon | |
|---|---|
Alon (center) with David Ben-Gurion during the Prime Minister's visit to 101 Squadron
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|
| Born |
17 January 1921 Safed, British Mandate for Palestine |
| Died | 16 October 1948 (aged 27) Herzliya Airport, Israel |
| Buried | Nahalat Yitzhack Cemetery, Tel Aviv |
| Allegiance |
Royal Air Force Israel Defense Forces |
| Service/branch | Israeli Air Force |
| Years of service | 1940–1948 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Commands held | 101 Squadron |
| Battles/wars | 1948 Arab-Israeli War |
Mordechai "Modi" Alon (17 January 1921 – 16 October 1948) was an Israeli fighter pilot who with the formation of the Israeli Air Force in May 1948, assumed command of its first fighter squadron. Flying the Avia S-199, Alon participated in the IAF's first combat sortie on 29 May 1948, and on 3 June scored the IAF's very first aerial victories, downing a pair of Royal Egyptian Air Force C-47s over Tel-Aviv.
Mordechai Alon was born in Safed on 17 January 1921, to Yaacov and Naomi Kalibansky, pioneers of the Second Aliyah. The family moved around several times before finally settling in Tel-Aviv, where Alon attended the Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium while secretly enlisting in the Haganah. After graduating Alon went off to serve in Kibbutz Degania Alef and in 1938 was among the founding members of Hanita.
In 1940 Alon enlisted in the Royal Air Force, heeding calls by the Jewish Agency for the Jews of Palestine to support the British war effort. Denied the chance to train as a fighter pilot, in November 1940 Alon attended the RAF's Wireless Operators course in Ismailia, qualifying as a Ground Wireless Operator.
Persisting in RAF service, in August 1943 Alon was finally allowed to undertake RAF flight training. He began his training in Rhodesia on 24 November 1943, graduating on 22 December 1944. After several postings in Cairo and Italy, in August 1945 Alon was posted to an RAF squadron flying P-51 Mustangs out of RAF Ramat David. Growing tensions between British mandatory authorities and the Yeshuv, however, prompted the RAF to transfer Alon once again. Torn between conflicting loyalties, Alon shortly thereafter quit the RAF. On 31 January 1946, he returned to Palestine, where he enrolled at the Technion, studying architecture.
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