Aug 17, 2026 · 47 min · 14 segments
Brigadier General (Ret.) Israel Baharav is one of Israel's most accomplished fighter pilots, credited with twelve MiG-21 kills during his distinguished career in the Israeli Air Force. Over three…
Israel BaharavGuestTucker HamiltonHostSo the title of the book is The Burst, which comes from your gunnery philosophy.
Can you explain what the burst means and why it made other pilots uncomfortable?
Four out of my first five MiG kill were accomplished with my boresight at the correct lead without waiting for the gunsight pipper to settle on the targets During training dogfighting my peers, I didn't chase the pipper.
Instead, I focused on technique of bringing the bore sight to what I estimated to be the correct lead.
As I learned to refine my precision, the pipper would complete its lag precisely onto the target, but in my mind, I had already squeezed the trigger one or two second earlier.
Therefore, in those situations where my practice opponent maneuver in the way that defied the limitation of the gunsight, I could pull the trigger the moment the bore sight reached the correct lead, saving the time of the pipper lagging movement.
It was only after I earned my four initial successful real kills that my technique became visible and exploded into controversy.
Other believed victories with this wild shooting, this Baharam burst, will mislead other pilots, tempting them to ditch proper aim and fail with a gaster.
And finally, after further successes, the Israeli Air Force adapt it and reduce the frames required and timing of pipper on the target.
Yes, I paid a price, but I rest in that ultimately, the Baharam Burst made the Israeli Air Force much more kinetic.
So you were having this extraordinary success in the air, and you face this resistance from within.
What does it say about institutions that they sometimes punish the people proving them wrong?
So the title of the book is The Burst, which comes from your gunnery philosophy.
Can you explain what the burst means and why it made other pilots uncomfortable?
Four out of my first five MiG kill were accomplished with my boresight at the correct lead without waiting for the gunsight pipper to settle on the targets During training dogfighting my peers, I didn't chase the pipper.
Instead, I focused on technique of bringing the bore sight to what I estimated to be the correct lead.
As I learned to refine my precision, the pipper would complete its lag precisely onto the target, but in my mind, I had already squeezed the trigger one or two second earlier.
Therefore, in those situations where my practice opponent maneuver in the way that defied the limitation of the gunsight, I could pull the trigger the moment the bore sight reached the correct lead, saving the time of the pipper lagging movement.
It was only after I earned my four initial successful real kills that my technique became visible and exploded into controversy.
Other believed victories with this wild shooting, this Baharam burst, will mislead other pilots, tempting them to ditch proper aim and fail with a gaster.
And finally, after further successes, the Israeli Air Force adapt it and reduce the frames required and timing of pipper on the target.
Yes, I paid a price, but I rest in that ultimately, the Baharam Burst made the Israeli Air Force much more kinetic.
So you were having this extraordinary success in the air, and you face this resistance from within.
What does it say about institutions that they sometimes punish the people proving them wrong?
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