Militaryמייק פלנגן
Mike Flanagan
Mike Flanagan was an Irish soldier in the British Army who, in 1948, took 2 Cromwell tanks to Israeli forces and later served in the Israeli Armored Corps.
1926 to 2014Taking 2 Cromwell tanks in 1948Early Israeli Armored Corps serviceAgricultural envoy work in Africa
- Born
- 15 May 1926, Foxford
- Died
- 31 January 2014, Israel
- Occupation
- military personnel
- Wars
- World War II, 1948 Palestine war
Mike Flanagan was born in 1926 in Foxford
Flanagan was born in 1926 in Foxford, County Mayo, Ireland. He joined the British Army at 16 and was trained as a tank mechanic.
In World War II he took part in the invasion of Normandy, and his unit helped free the Bergen-Belsen camp in 1945. After the war he served in Germany, and later he was posted to Palestine.
In 1948 he and Scottish tank commander Harry McDonald made contact with the Haganah in a Haifa cafe. On the night the British left, the 2 drove 2 Cromwell tanks to Tel Aviv, and these tanks became the base of the IDF's first armored battalion. Flanagan then fought with them in the 1948 war.
He stayed in Israel, converted to Judaism, took the name Michael Peleg and married Ruth Levy. The couple joined kibbutz Sha'ar HaAmakim, and he ran the tank repair unit at Julis. He studied agriculture and worked as an agricultural envoy in Africa.
After Ruth died in 1982, he moved to Toronto and married Shirley Swartz. He died in 2014 and was buried at Sha'ar HaAmakim near his wife and son.
Mike Flanagan's life in 9 milestones
- 1926
Born in Foxford, Ireland.
- 1945
His unit freed the Bergen-Belsen camp.
- 1948
Took 2 Cromwell tanks from the British to Israeli forces.
- 1950
His son Dani was born.
- 1956
Served as a reservist in the Sinai Campaign.
- 1967
Served as a reservist in the Six-Day War.
- 1973
Served as a reservist in the Yom Kippur War.
- 1982
His wife Ruth died.
- 2014
Died and was buried at Sha'ar HaAmakim.
Mike Flanagan served in Armored Corps
In 1948 he served as a tank driver in the Israeli Armored Corps and was wounded in Operation Yoav. He later served as a reservist in 1956, 1967 and 1973.
These 6 people share a field, a unit or a party with Mike Flanagan
Modi Alon1921 to 1948Commanding 101 SquadronMilitary
Siman-Tov Ganeh1924 to 1968Medal of Valor recipientMilitary- Blond Dov1923 to 1948Lehi underground operationsMilitary
Felix Beatus1917 to 1992Commanding the first IDF tank battalionMilitary
Levi Mann1927 to 2012Capturing Sharm el-Sheikh in 1956Military
Zvika Greengoldborn 1952Zvika Force at NafekhMilitary
Based on English Wikipedia, Mike Flanagan (Irish-Israeli soldier) and Hebrew Wikipedia, מייק פלנגן, under CC BY-SA 4.0. The facts are Wikidata's.