The Vision
We exist to serve anyone who wants to acquire the skills of the Israeli Defense Force’s Special Operations Units. Our program is adrenaline packed with high-level military training from the best special force officers in the world.
About Us:
LIONOPS is a Military-Tourism company offering you an unforgettable experience in Israel. The company consists of officers and instructors from the elite units of the Israeli Defense Force who are eager to give you a crash course on engaging in modern combat. Among the skills you will learn are: parachuting, navigation, automatic weapons, grenades, RPG’s, krav maga hand combat, house-to-house warfare, anti-terrorism techniques, guerilla warfare strategy, gunshot medical procedures, camouflage, and basic wilderness survival skills. You will have an experience like no other, while encountering similar challenges that are met by the Israeli Defense Force’s elite units.
What Do We Do?
This is no honeymoon. We take groups of civilians from around the world and provide them with extensive training in modern warfare over a 7-10 day period. The training is a shortened version of the top-secret techniques of the Israeli Special Forces. Armies from around the world come to Israel to learn from the Israeli Special Forces – now you can too. After training with us you will know more about conducting modern warfare than 95% of the rebel forces in combat today.
Your safety is our first concern: you and your group members will undergo a background check and will be accompanied by top instructors throughout your combat training. You will jump out of real planes, shoot real machine guns, throw real grenades, learn to street fight with lethal force, and learn how survive in our unforgiving wilderness – the same terrain you would find in Libya, Afghanistan and Iraq. You will learn combat related terminology, how to fight in the open, and how to sweep a house clean in close combat. You will learn how individual fighting differs from team fighting. You will put your training to use against one another and against Israeli Special Forces in paintball team fighting contests and krav maga sparing.
Why Join Us?
Special Forces military operations involve a secret world that is full of danger that is both fascinating and hypnotic. Many have seen special units perform dangerous operations on the news and in movies and have said to themselves: “I wish I could do that.” Well, now you can.
Lionops will give you an experience unlike any other. You will return home with memories that will last forever, and with the skills and knowledge to both defend yourself and engage in a military operation if you ever had to. Every time you read the paper or listen to the news about the latest military engagement anywhere around the world, you will have a deeper understanding of the strategy involved, the physical challenges, the likely outcome, and both the thrill and terror of modern warfare.
This is an experience that you should not miss. It is an experience that sticks with you for life.
Why us?
We are the only company that offers military training for civilians by the best special force instructors in the world. Only in Israel, with us, can you legally learn what we will teach you.
The company consists of a great team of professional soldiers with many years of combat experience - both in training soldiers and in conducting live operations against hizballa, Hamas and in covert operations throughout the Middle East. In short, our instructors are the real deal, and they will look after you and train you as if you were their soldiers.
The Experience:
Five, four, three, two, one: GO! GO! GO! You say a prayer and jump out of the cargo plane with your squad into the silence of the clouds above the Israeli desert. You can see the mountains of the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria rising in the distance. As you free-fall, you clutch your gun and feel your heart pounding. A team of Israel’s elite commandos are waiting to ambush you on the ground. Your mission is for your team to find and eliminate them with your paintball guns. You will have to work as a team and use the training you have learned. After the engagement, you will have to move to high ground to set up camp as night falls. You will rotate guard throughout the night in preparation for a counter-assault on your position by the commandos. Now close your eyes and imagine it all. Jumping out of a plane, engaging an enemy, defending a position against insurgents in the pitch black of a desert night. That rush, that excitement, that fear – you will feel alive in a way that you never have before. The high of combat is addicting, like nothing else we can experience in life, and we offer you that high – without that annoying risk of actually getting wounded or killed.
You will enjoy extensive training in firing long and short weapons of every kind in various situations, shooting from difficult angles, fighting outside and inside built areas, rescuing hostages, and navigating by maps in both day and night scenarios, on foot and by jeep. You will learn how to deploy camouflage and move in stealth mode in an open area; how to occupy and successfully defend buildings and high ground; how to lead a squad of soldiers; and how to be led by others. All of this will be taught through simulated exercises carried out through real military scenarios. You will learn to cope with disappointments and failures, extreme pressure and other emotions that surface during combat.
What Does A “Typical” Day Look Like?
6:00 Wake up and organization.
6:45 Israeli Breakfast
7:30 Drive to training
8:00 Morning lectures regarding:
*Engaging a residential complex
*Penetrating and clearing a building
*Rescuing Hostages
*Treating gunshot wounds in the field - prolonging life
* Hand combat street fighting
* Knife Combat * Throwing grenades
* Shooting Glocks, Uzis, M16’s, Sniper Rifles and RPG’s
12:00 Israeli Lunch, rest and briefings.
13:00 Indoor combat live drills. This may include:
*A parallel movement of forces.
*Indoor parallel warfare.
*Residential complex takeover.
*Hand combat sparing
16:00 Snack and coffee.
16:30 Preparations for exercise concludes with an Israeli dinner.
17:30 Complex takeover exercises such as fighting, releasing hostages, rescue and retreat. Also full paint ball and pyrotechnic exercises, carried out into the night.
21:30 The exercises of the day are summed up.
22:00 Drive to the camp.
23:00 Sleep (trust us, you will need it!).
Training Area
The training area is not fixed. It constantly changes from trip to trip. We could be in our northern mountains near Lebanon and Syria, or in our southern desert in proximity to Jordan and Egypt. Israel is small, but our landscape is diverse, and our special forces know how to defend every inch of it. You will learn the same.
The current trip we are offering will take place in Northern Israel, but desert combat strategy and technique will be covered as well. Our preferred places in the north include areas that are equipped with facilities and tools. These areas are usually mountains or areas with mountain contours.
Accommodation
We provide all accommodation and food – the cost of which is included in our fees. Each trip, depending on its location, has changing facilities and accommodations.
FAQ
Who can go on the trip?
The trip is for anyone over the age of 21, in decent physical condition, who wishes to train under, and practice against, Israeli special forces. You do not need any special background prior to the trip. The trip is organized in such a way that anyone can participate and enjoy this experience while being mentored and supervised closely by instructors.
How could I possibly learn how to conduct modern warfare in such a short time? Doesn’t this take years to learn?
You can practice the same way Israeli elite units do without years of training or even experience in the army. We closely monitor you and accompany you throughout all the activities that you undertake. We don’t recommend that you leave your corporate job to become a mercenary, and that’s not our goal. In addition to a thrilling, life-altering vacation, after a week of training with us, you will return home with a solid foundation in the essentials of modern warfare. Even if you never have to use these skills – and we hope that you never will – having this knowledge will forever change the way you think about and understand war.
How exactly is training conducted during the trips?
Training is conducted individually and in groups. There are exercises that are performed alone with close mentoring such as shooting and camouflage, and there are exercises that are performed in groups - such as combat, stealth movement and the occupation and defense of a position.
Throughout the exercises you will be accompanied, watched-over, and critiqued by our instructors. By having instructors with you at all times, you can experience the high-level military tactics and operations we teach without first needing to go through the grueling, time-consuming training process of the Israeli Army. We skip straight to the fun stuff.
Can I see an example of a specific training engagement?
Hostage rescue operation: we give you a map of a target (a cluster of buildings, or a hilly forest terrain) in which our instructors (terrorists) are holding three American reporters as hostages. Collaborators that work with our forces drew the map. The terrorists have given an ultimatum that in four hours, if the money transfer is not carried out, they will execute the hostages. The Israeli government does not negotiate with terrorists – in real life, they send us in. So in this drill – we send you in.
Because you and your team are the only elite force in the arena, you have two hours to plan, practice and carry out your rescue mission. Your intelligence should be above that of the terrorists, and you should aim at the extraction point marked on the map and carry out the mission successfully. All drills are conducted with paintball guns. You will have to eliminate the terrorists and save the hostages, while minimizing casualties to your team.
I have no experience whatsoever in the Army. Can I still perform some of the tasks in the trip?
Our starting point is zero for all participants in the trip. Do not worry that you will not be up to speed because you have no experience as an elite fighter. The trip’s activities are organized to meet the different levels of experience you may or may not have. We assume that you have no prior knowledge of any military tactics. For those of you who have done lots of shooting before, we can arrange for you to work privately on other skills that you would like to improve: krav maga, knife combat, etc. Inexperienced fighters leave our program as experienced fighters, more than capable of engaging in street fighting and modern warfare at a basic level.
Will I enjoy the trip?
Yes! More than enjoyment – this trip will leave you with a sense of accomplishment, and an emotional high that will stay with you for the rest of your life. You will make deep connections with your team members and the Israeli special force soldiers and instructors on the trip – you will have cared for one another and fought alongside, and against, one another. This deep bond will translate to lasting friendships.
But beyond the once-in-a-lifetime experience and thrill you will get from our trip, we provide you with some very important skills – skills that may some day save your life or protect your family. Furthermore, in the process of undergoing our extreme training, you will learn how to cope with disappointments and failures, with extreme stress, with mental and physical fatigue. You will learn that survival is about being trustworthy, and being able to trust others. You will learn valuable team skills and leadership skills that you will bring back to your work and your everyday life. And you will get to know Israel at a deeper level – our terrain, our food, our culture, our army and the men who risk their lives to protect our way of life. We will let you draw your own conclusions, but we hope to leave you with a lasting favorable impression of Israel, our people and the values we fight for.
Who are the Instructors on the trips?
Trip instructors are first-rate professionals drawn from the elite units of the Israeli Military. Most of them were officers with a rich history in conducting successful operations. Our guys walk the talk. These officers train you, and then guide you through a variety of combat scenarios that they themselves have experienced dozens, if not hundreds of times. When Israel goes to war, it is our instructors who lead men on the front lines. You will learn from the top special force officers of the best, and most experienced, army in the world.
I’m a bit worried - will I receive any personal attention?
All of our trips involve a high degree of one-on-one training and mentoring. Our instructors get up close and personal with you. Instructors are there to make sure that you receive top training, that you are safe at all times, and that any questions or concerns you may have are addressed. You will come very quickly to trust our instructors with your life, as they will trust theirs with you. Whenever you give civilians machine guns and grenades, you need to have experienced instructors in close proximity. We do not take this responsibility lightly. However, we will not hold your hand throughout the week. You will have to use the training you learned to lead military exercises, defend positions, navigate through difficult terrain, engage in frontal assaults, and clear houses in street-to-street combat.
Will I have spare time to do other things on my trip?
You will have a limited amount of downtime. Why? Because we want to make sure that you get more than your money’s worth from our program. We want you to leave as a trained soldier. We have a very short amount of time to accomplish all that we want to do with you, so there is not much free time. When you are resting, we will teach you a few practical and essential words and sayings in Hebrew. And our instructors will tell you about real missions they participated in, what the outcome was, and what they learned in the process. Many of these lessons can be applied to your training engagements, as well as insights into leadership in a variety of stressful contexts. You will also be tired – and will likely want to take a nap whenever you have time. However, at the end of the trip, we will take you to Tel Aviv for a day on the beach and a crazy party at one of Israel’s best nightclubs. This is the ultimate way to unwind with your new friends after the intense week we put you through!
Need more convincing?
We are not in the business of convincing customers to participate in our program. After reading about our service, if you don’t immediately want to get on an El Al flight to Israel to join us, then maybe you should go to Cancun instead.
