Israel's air force plans to enhance its air-refueling capabilities, increasing the range of its warplanes. The changes come as Iran emerges as an increasing threat.
Air force Brig. Gen. Yohanan Loker has said the program would help Israel meet "emerging distant threats," though he did not mention Iran.

Iran's border is more than 700 miles from Israel. The range of Israeli F-16s without refueling is about 1,300 miles.

One option the air force is considering is the purchase and development of drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles, to serve as refueling tankers for attack jets and other aircraft used in long-range missions.

The air force also could modernize its refueling fleet and convert U.S.-manufactured executive jets, such as the Gulfstream G550, into airborne fuel tankers.

"If you have fuel, you can reach distant targets, better utilize your assets and carry larger amounts of weapons," Loker has said.

Israel has reached distant targets before. In 1981, eight F-16 fighters escorted by six F-15s flew nearly 650 miles each way to bomb the Osirak reactor in Iraq, just south of Baghdad. The attack eliminated Saddam Hussein's nuclear program at the time.

Aerial-refueling aircraft were not used in the Osirak strike. The F-16s were fitted with extra fuel tanks, so the planes had to carry less ammunition.

In 1976, Israeli air force C-130 transport planes carried commandos 2,500 miles to the Entebbe Airport in Uganda and rescued 248 hostages taken captive aboard an Air France flight.

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