Maj. Bar who continued in his father’s path of joining the Israeli Air Force tells Israel National News about his story.
“I will take you back to in the summer of 2006. It was three months before my bar mitzvah and my father served as an airborne mechanic in the ch-53 helicopter squadron in Tel Nof [airbase]. In the beginning of the war he was sent immediately to the squadron he managed to participate in a lot of operations and some of them we know and some of them will stay unknown and in the last operation on August 12, 2006 he flew into Lebanon and his helicopter was shot down by Hezbollah's missile,” Bar tells Israel National News from the FIDF event in New York.
He has felt a lifelong connection to the Air Force, so joining was natural for him.
“I would say that my connection to the Air Force and the IDF began the day I was born because I was born and raised at the north Air Force base where my father served in the ch-53 helicopter squadron,” he says. “Serving in the Air Force is very natural for me but since my father died in this case, this circumstance has a very different meaning.”
Bar was moved by the support of American Jewry at the FIDF event, not only the donations but meeting the Jewish community behind the dollars.
“So I have to say, first as a commander in the IDF, I can see the support of the FIDF every day – from the scholarships to the help for lone soldiers that live in Israel and they made the decision to come and join the army. Seeing those people next to me it's amazing that everyone can express their love for Israel. For me and all the other soldiers, it's amazing. It's a true love and real support for the State of Israel and its soldiers.”
What will his message be for his soldiers when he goes home?
“They have to meet this delegation too. Meeting the Jewish community in the States, it's amazing. It's a very meaningful and powerful experience and I think that we have to keep this connection very strong because we're all a big family.”