Israeli air force Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopters will protect northern Israel when the Israeli defence forces (IDF) withdraw from the security zone in southern Lebanon in July.
The move comes as the Israeli air force has decided to acquire 12 AH-64DApache Longbow helicopters to bolster its fleet of 41 AH-64As. The $410 million contract for the AH-64Ds is to be signed next year. An Israeli air force source says that some earlier Apaches will be upgraded to match the Longbow standard.
The AH-64, along with intelligence sensors carried on balloons and unmanned air vehicles, will seek to locate, identify and destroy Palestinian Hezbollah guerrilla units preparing to strike at northern Israel with Katyusha rockets.
Currently the tasks are done by IDF ground units supported by the South Lebanese Army. To date Apaches have been used to destroy targets in Lebanon following location and identification by ground based sources.
Source: Flight International
