T-6 Harvard - Syria - 1948

20 AT-6 Texans were employed by the 1st and 2nd fighter squadrons of the Syrian Air Force in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, providing ground support for Syrian troops, and launching airstrikes against Israeli airfields, ships, and columns, losing one aircraft to anti-aircraft fire. They also engaged in air to air combat on a number of occasions, with a tail gunner shooting down an Israeli Avia S-199 fighter.

The Syrian Air Force T-6 Texan of the 1st Fighter Squadron, serial number 206, in which Sergeant al-Abed and First Mechanic Muhi al-Din Wadi shot down an Avia S.199 flown by a South African mercenary pilot, Lionel Bloch, over Qunaytra on July 10, 1948. This was the first time that a Syrian aircraft had shot down an enemy plane in combat. Six days later this same Texan was brought down by Israeli ground-fire over Ayelet Ha’Shakhar, killing its crew. On the other hand, it is possible that the Texan suffered a catastrophic structural failure while pulling out of its strafing dive. Since First Mechanic Muhi al-Din Wadi had been mortally wounded by gunfire from the IAF Avia on July 10, the Texan must itself have suffered some damage. Perhaps the repairs carried out at the grass airstrip of Istabl were inadequate.