The IAI Lavi (Hebrew: לביא, "lion") is a single-engined fourth-generation multirole jet fighter developed in Israel, by Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), during the 1980s.

Thirty-one years ago, on Aug. 30, 1987, an Israeli cabinet voted to terminate Israel’s Lavi fighter program, ending the largest single weapons development effort in the history of the...

Jul 1, 2024 · Israel developed the Lavi fighter jet in the 1980s, but the project was canceled due to the US withdrawal of funding and export restrictions. The Lavi was intended to replace the Kfir, F-4 Phantom II, and A-4 Skyhawks, with a goal of producing 300 aircraft.

Feb 11, 2025 · Observing that low-end fighters like the Kfir had a shrinking role in the evolving battlefield, with possibly low survivability, the Lavi evolved into a highly integrated multi-role fighter-bomber with extensive avionics and electronic flight and engine controls, comparable to those being built elsewhere in the world.

The first such attempt resulted in the Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) Kfir (Lion Cub), a multi-role fighter developed from the Mirage 5, of which a total of 212 were produced. To replace the Kfir, Israel developed the Lavi (Young Lion).

Jun 6, 2020 · Israeli contractors were engaged to provide the aerodynamic and structural outlines for the J-10. The Israeli influences on the J-10’s design are unmistakable: a close-coupled, canard-delta...

Jan 9, 2017 · Three years later, Israel announced that the Lavi — lion in Hebrew — would be developed. It would be a long-range, multi-role strike fighter incorporating Israeli and American technology and...

Nesher's descendant, Arieh, wasn't built but morphed into what became a prototype, Lavi. Bukvoed. It was the Israel Aircraft Industries’ most ambitious project: to design and develop a...

The Lavi was a small, smart, highly robust fighter, that was to be the IAF's solution for the future battlefield. Its uniqueness lay in the combination of a physically small plane with very sophisticated, software-rich systems.

The IAI Lavi (Hebrew: לביא, "Young Lion") was a single-engined fourth-generation multirole jet fighter developed in Israel, by Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), during the 1980s.