The Times of Israel reports: The Israeli Air Force came under fire from critics Tuesday for deploying dozens of soldiers for a complex video welcoming former Google CEO Eric Schmidt involving elaborate choreography and the use of two jets, with some saying the film involved improper use of the troops.
Over 100 airmen formed the Google logo standing between two trainer fighter jets on the tarmac at the Hazerim Air Force base near Beersheba and were filmed from overhead with a drone in honor of Schmidt’s recent visit.
The film was leaked by Israel Radio reporter Carmela Menashe late Monday, unleashing a firestorm of criticism.
A father of a serviceman who partook in the video said that last Monday the troops were ordered to muster on a promenade and arrange themselves for the filming.
“There they did all sorts of shapes on the order of the base drill sergeant and it was filmed,” the unnamed father told Israel Radio. “It was all done at two in the afternoon in the peak heat of Beersheba, which is a very hot place. They didn’t bother to give them anything to drink. The whole thing took an hour and a half after a day of traveling to get back to base.”
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