Prelude
Barkai had two Sa'ar 4-class missile boats, INS Reshef and INS Keshet; two Sa'ar 3-class missile boats, INS Soufa and INS Herev; one Sa'ar 2-class missile boats, INS Eilat (named after the INS Eilat sunk six years earlier); and one missileless Sa'ar 1-class patrol boat, INS Misgav. At 11:00 PM, Barkai formed his boats into three pairs, moving in parallel lines across a broad front. The northern pair included the Reshef and the Keshet, the central pair the Eilat and the Misgav, and the southern pair the Herev and the Soufa. At this point, the Osas did not appear on the radar or the long-range electronic sensors, and it was not clear if they were moving toward the Israeli force.
Close to midnight, Barkai took the southern pair to shell targets at Damietta on the delta. As they prepared to fire, their ESM detected something off Baltim, to the west. Barkai ordered the northern pair to disperse long-distance chaff to his north, to see if that would draw fire. After a few moments, the chaff cloud was targeted by missiles from the west. The Sa'ar boats switched on their electronic defenses and opened full throttle, while Barkai decided not to call for help from the Israeli Air Force.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Baltim
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