[Journeyman Pictures] At 61, Uri Gil is the oldest active fighter pilot in the world. A passionate painter as well as a soldier, Uri talks with surprising candor about his values and life in the Israel Air Force. Uri was flying over the Suez Canal in 1973 when a missile whizzed past him: "If I'd broken a fraction of a second later, I wouldn't be here today." Over his 41 years of service Uri downed many enemy planes and he can't hide the pride he feels: "I'm the only pilot who downed planes in all the wars." Yet Uri never gloated: "I was never happy afterwards. I like to show the enemy some respect." Just before his last flight, he takes his granddaughter to see his F16 fighter plane: "This plane's on call. If enemies come to our borders, then someone has to make sure these planes don't enter the country, right? So we take off in this and we run them off."
2008-10-31 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive