In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “formed in 1948”. Today it says “israeli air force squadron operating the f-15i thunder out of hatzerim”.
Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-02. In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “formed in 1948”. Today it says “israeli air force squadron operating the f-15i thunder out of hatzerim”.
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The opening as it read in 2010
69 Squadron was composed of former US Air Force B-17 Flying Fortress aircraft, beginning with three B-17s in 1948. The B-17s were transferred to 103 Squadron in 1954, and were placed in storage for several months in 1956. In October 1956, 69 Squadron was reactivated for the Sinai Campaign , but was disbanded at the end of that conflict. Thirteen years later, in 1969, 69 Squadron was reformed as the second Israeli Air Force F-4E Phantom squadron. Commanded by Avihu Ben-Nun , it was quickly pressed into service in the ongoing War of Attrition . Between late 1969 and the ceasefire of August 1970, 69 and 201 Squadrons lost nine aircraft altogether, although Israel received eight additional F-4E Phantoms in July 1970. Alongside regular F-4Es, 69 squadron also employed the reconnaissance variant of the Phantom, the RF-4E. During the Yom Kippur war of 1973, the squadron lost several aircraft. 69 Squadron was disbanded in the mid 1990s, but was reformed shortly later in anticipation of the arrival of Israel's new F-15Is in 1998. In early 2006 it was reported that the squadron was preparing for a possible preemptive strike against the Iranian nuclear program . According to The Sunday Times , F-15Is from 69 Squadron took part in Operation Orchard , the September 6, 2007 airstrike on a suspected nuclear site in Syria. Report: IAF trained for Iran attack , The Jerusalem Post.1
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 350295001.
The opening as it stood in 2015 11 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Military unit The 69 "Hammers" Squadron is an Israeli Air Force squadron operating the F-15I Thunder out of Hatzerim .It was formed in July 1948 to operate three B-17 Flying Fortresses which the fledgling Israeli Air Force had acquired in the United States.The squadron flew the Flying Fortress, a type credited with propelling the IAF into the realm of modern aerial warfare, during both the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and 1956 Suez Crisis .Disbanded in early 1957, 69 Squadron reformed in 1969 to fly the F-4 Phantom II . 69 Squadron operated the Kurnass (Sledgehammer), as the Phantom was known in Israel, for 25 years and its Phantoms saw extensive action during the War of Attrition , Yom Kippur War , First Lebanon War and numerous engagements in between.The squadron often played a central role in IAF suppression of enemy air defences (SEAD) efforts and took part in repeated battles against Egyptian and Syrian air defence arrays.The squadron retired its Phantoms in 1994 but reformed shortly thereafter to operate the F-15I Thunder.Described as the "long-range, heavy bombing element of Israeli air power", 69 Squadron is reputed to have carried out Operation Orchard , the 6 September 2007 airstrike on a nuclear site in Syria.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 664382188.
The opening as it stood in 2020
Military unit The 69 "Hammers" Squadron is an Israeli Air Force squadron operating the F-15I Thunder out of Hatzerim . It was formed in July 1948 to operate three B-17 Flying Fortresses which the fledgling Israeli Air Force had acquired in the United States. The squadron flew the Flying Fortress, a type credited with propelling the IAF into the realm of modern aerial warfare, during both the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and 1956 Suez Crisis . Disbanded in early 1957, 69 Squadron reformed in 1969 to fly the F-4 Phantom II . 69 Squadron operated the Kurnass (Sledgehammer), as the Phantom was known in Israel, for 25 years and its Phantoms saw extensive action during the War of Attrition , Yom Kippur War , First Lebanon War and numerous engagements in between. The squadron often played a central role in IAF suppression of enemy air defences (SEAD) efforts and took part in repeated battles against Egyptian and Syrian air defence arrays. The squadron retired its Phantoms in 1994 but reformed shortly thereafter to operate the F-15I Thunder. Described as the "long-range, heavy bombing element of Israeli air power", 69 Squadron, together with Squadrons 119 and 253 , carried out Operation Outside the Box , the 6 September 2007 airstrike on a nuclear site in Syria.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 963587261.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023
Israeli Air Force squadron formed 1948 Military unit The 69 "Hammers" Squadron is an Israeli Air Force squadron operating the F-15I Thunder out of Hatzerim . It was formed in July 1948 to operate three B-17 Flying Fortresses which the fledgling Israeli Air Force had acquired in the United States. The squadron flew the Flying Fortress, a type credited with propelling the IAF into the realm of modern aerial warfare, during both the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and 1956 Suez Crisis . Disbanded in early 1957, 69 Squadron reformed in 1969 to fly the F-4 Phantom II . 69 Squadron operated the Kurnass (Sledgehammer), as the Phantom was known in Israel, for 25 years and its Phantoms saw extensive action during the War of Attrition , Yom Kippur War , First Lebanon War and numerous engagements in between. The squadron often played a central role in IAF suppression of enemy air defences (SEAD) efforts and took part in repeated battles against Egyptian and Syrian air defence arrays. The squadron retired its Phantoms in 1994 but reformed shortly thereafter to operate the F-15I Thunder. Described as the "long-range, heavy bombing element of Israeli air power", 69 Squadron, together with Squadrons 119 and 253 , carried out Operation Outside the Box , the 6 September 2007 airstrike on a nuclear site in Syria.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1150653242.
The opening as it stood in 2025
Israeli Air Force squadron formed 1948 Military unit The 69 "Hammers" Squadron is an Israeli Air Force squadron operating the F-15I Thunder out of Hatzerim . It was formed in July 1948 to operate three B-17 Flying Fortresses which the fledgling Israeli Air Force had acquired in the United States. The squadron flew the Flying Fortress, an aircraft credited with propelling the IAF into the realm of modern aerial warfare, during both the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and 1956 Suez Crisis . Disbanded in early 1957, 69 Squadron reformed in 1969 to fly the F-4 Phantom II . 69 Squadron operated the Kurnass (Sledgehammer), as the Phantom was known in Israel, for 25 years. Its Phantoms saw extensive action during the War of Attrition , Yom Kippur War , First Lebanon War and numerous engagements in between. The squadron often played a central role in IAF suppression of enemy air defences (SEAD) efforts and took part in repeated battles against Egyptian and Syrian air defence. The squadron retired its Phantoms in 1994 and reformed shortly thereafter to operate the F-15I Thunder. Described as the "long-range, heavy bombing element of Israeli air power", 69 Squadron, together with Squadrons 119 and 253 , carried out Operation Outside the Box , the September 2007 airstrike on a nuclear site in Syria.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1266015509. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “formed in 1948”. Today it says “israeli air force squadron operating the f-15i thunder out of hatzerim”. Read the current article and compare.
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
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What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined between 2010 and 2025.
Then
formed in 1948
Now
israeli air force squadron operating the f-15i thunder out of hatzerim
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
