Direct proof of use
Israel used F-15 family aircraft in the 2025 Israel-Iran Conflict during Operation Rising Lion. FPRI's open-source air-offensive analysis identified Baz aircraft among Israeli fighter types carrying JDAM-series weapons in IDF campaign media and identified F-15A/C/D Baz aircraft from the Knights of the Twin Tail Squadron departing for strikes against Iran with two SPICE 1000 glide bombs each.
The IDF Air Force later listed the Baz as one of the aircraft types that attacked in Iran, ranking it fourth by attack volume during the operation. RUSI separately assessed early IDF-released videos as showing F-15I, F-16I, and F-35I aircraft involved in the opening operation.
Sources: FPRI Rising Lion Air Offensive Part I, IDF Aircraft Ranking in Iran, RUSI First 72 Hours
Timeline
On June 13, 2025, Israel opened Operation Rising Lion with air strikes and reported covert action against Iran. CRS describes the opening of the conflict, subsequent Iranian ballistic-missile retaliation, U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22, Iran's Al Udeid attack on June 23, and a ceasefire announced on June 24.
During the campaign, FPRI recorded repeated Israeli air operations against Iranian surface-to-surface missile, surface-to-air missile, radar, UAV, nuclear, and command-related targets. Its aircraft-specific loadout evidence connects the F-15 family most directly through Baz aircraft and precision air-to-ground munitions; broader target-set reporting does not assign every target to F-15 sorties.
Sources: CRS Israel-Iran Conflict, FPRI Rising Lion Air Offensive Part I
Operational role
The sourced record places Israeli F-15 family aircraft in the long-range strike and interdiction portion of the campaign. Baz evidence is the clearest public variant-level documentation: FPRI tied Baz aircraft to JDAM-series weapons and SPICE 1000 glide bombs, while the IDF Air Force article described the F-15 Baz as a long-range, heavy-payload aircraft that attacked in Iran.
Family-level reporting also links Hatzerim-based F-15s to suppression and counter-missile operations. In an interview with The Jerusalem Post, the Hatzerim base commander said his F-15s and F-16s attacked Iranian air defenses to gain air supremacy and attacked ballistic missiles to defend Israel's home front. The same account says Israeli aircraft continued hunting and striking ballistic-missile teams and targets during the war.
Public sources used here support Israeli use of F-15 family aircraft in strike, air-defense-suppression, and ballistic-missile interdiction roles. They do not provide a complete sortie count, a full variant-by-variant target list, or independent confirmation that every reported target set was hit by F-15 aircraft rather than by other Israeli crewed aircraft or uncrewed systems.
Sources: FPRI Rising Lion Air Offensive Part I, IDF Aircraft Ranking in Iran, Jerusalem Post Hatzerim F-15 Interview, RUSI First 72 Hours
