Uri Gil

Uri Gil was born in 1943 in Givat Haim Meuhad

Gil was born on April 9, 1943, and grew up in Kibbutz Givat Haim. He was the third of four sons. As a boy he thought about becoming a composer.

He joined the IDF in 1962 and finished the flight course as a fighter pilot in 1963. He fought in the Six-Day War, the War of Attrition, the Yom Kippur War and the First Lebanon War. He commanded 253 Squadron and was credited with 7.5 enemy aircraft downed.

Gil left regular service in 1985 but kept flying as a reserve fighter pilot until June 2003. He retired with the rank of brigadier general. He holds Guinness World Records as an active fighter pilot of advanced age and for a high-g aircraft downing.

Gil began painting in his late twenties while still an officer. He moved with his wife to the artists' village Ein Hod and painted portraits, still lifes and nudes. He showed his work at the Wilfred Israel Museum in 1995 and 1998.