Operation Nickel Grass was the U.S. military airlift that delivered 22,318 tons of war materiel to Israel between October 14 and November 14, 1973. U.S. Air Force transports flew 567 sorties from the United States. The cargo helped replenish Israeli supplies during the war and continued arriving after the October 24 ceasefire.
How the airlift worked
The Military Airlift Command used C-5 Galaxy and C-141 Starlifter transports. Aircraft flew from the United States to Lajes Field in the Azores to refuel, then continued to Lod Airport near Tel Aviv. Portugal allowed U.S. aircraft to use Lajes; other allies restricted or denied landing and overflight access. The first U.S. military transport arrived on October 14, two days after the operation began.
The C-5 carried large equipment and heavy cargo, while C-141s made up much of the sortie total. The U.S. Air Force’s official chronology counts 567 sorties and 22,318 tons delivered. An Air Force account at Travis Air Force Base describes the route, the aircraft and the operation’s continuation after the ceasefire in its history of Nickel Grass.
Why deliveries continued after the ceasefire
The ceasefire did not immediately restore Israel’s depleted stocks or end the need to rebuild its military inventory. The airlift continued for three weeks after the October 24 ceasefire, ending November 14. The Pentagon’s historical study of strategic air mobility also distinguishes U.S. flights from Israeli cargo missions, which carried additional supplies separately. The U.S. operation was one part of a broader resupply effort, and its delivery total refers to American military airlift rather than every shipment to Israel.
Nickel Grass required long-distance airlift under political and logistical constraints: limited landing rights, refueling at the Azores and high-volume unloading at Lod. The Air Force study of global air mobility details the U.S. airlift and separately reports Israeli missions. Keeping those totals distinct avoids attributing all wartime deliveries to the American aircraft.