The coffin of the late Ilan Ramon will arrive in Israel tomorrow at noon, together with the family members from Houston
Avi Blizovsky
Col. Ramon's coffin will arrive tomorrow afternoon from the USA to Israel, when a state farewell ceremony will be held for the Israeli astronaut at the air force base near Israel. The ceremony will be held with the participation of the heads of state, the IDF, the Air Force, and the Israeli Space Agency.
The family members of the late astronaut Ilan Ramon, Rona, the four children, Assaf, Tal, Yiftah and Noa, and the father, Eliezer Wolferman, will board a plane on their way to Israel today, along with his coffin wrapped in the Israeli flag. They will land tomorrow at noon in Israel, where an official memorial ceremony will be held, in the presence of the Prime Minister, the President of the State, public figures and representatives of the space agency NASA.
On Tuesday, the coffin will be flown to the air force base in Ramat David in the Jezreel Valley, and from there the funeral journey will depart to the cemetery in Moshav Nahalel. The funeral will be held with a full military ceremony, but Ramon will not be buried in the military plot, after Rona his wife asked to reserve a grave plot for her next to him.
His family requested that his funeral be held in an intimate forum of family members and close friends. The heads of state will not attend the funeral. The IDF was represented at the ceremony by the Chief of Staff, Major General Moshe (Bogie) Ya'alon and the top command of the Air Force.
The Jezreel Valley Regional Council received many requests from people who want to participate in the funeral, but the head of the regional council Eitan Brushi said that "unfortunately, we cannot respond to requests."
The Ministerial Committee on Ceremonies and Symbols is meeting today under the chairmanship of Minister Dani Neve to plan the memorial ceremony that will be held tomorrow in Netav.
