Israel successfully tests David’s Sling mid-range missile defense system

The performance of Iron Dome during the operation was impressive:

• During the 8-day operation, Hamas and Islamic Jihad launched 1,506 rockets and missiles at Israel.
• Of the 1,506 missiles, 1,057 fell harmlessly in empty fields, and 449 were headed toward populated towns and cities
• Of the 449, the Iron Dome system intercepted 421, and 28 hit buildings, killing five and injuring about four dozens.

The Iron Dome system relies on Israeli technology, but was funded by the United States. We should note that when it comes to military and intelligence cooperation, and the provision of sophisticated military technology, no American administration has been as supportive of Israel, or as generous, as the Obama administration (the scope and depth of this cooperation cannot be discussed for security reasons). Iron Dome is but one example. In 2009, Obama specifically added $204 million to the U.S. military aid to Israel for the purpose of developing Iron Dome, and in the wake of the system’s operational success, has allocated $677 million more for that purpose.

To understand Israel’s approach to missile defense, think of the defense in football, which consists of the defensive line, the linebackers, and the safeties. In the same way, Israel has been building a layered rocket and missile defense, with each layer aiming to intercept missiles or rockets launched from different ranges: short ranges (up to fifty miles), mid-range (up to 180 miles), and long range (ballistic, exoatmospheric). Israel has thus been working at the same time on three missile defense systems:

• Short range defense — Iron Dome, which became operational in April 2011, intercepts rockets fired from short distances of up to fifty miles.
• Mid-range defense — David’s Sling (also known as Magic Wand), developed by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Raytheon, and which will become operational in 2014, is designed to intercept projectiles with ranges of up to 180 miles.
• Long-range defense — Israel has also deployed the Arrow system, which has been developed jointly by Israel and the United States, and which aims to intercept longer range, ballistic missiles, such as those likely to be fired from Iran. The Arrow has been extensively tested, and the next generation of the system is scheduled for deployment in 2016. Haaretz reports thatthe next generation of the system, called the Arrow 3, will destroy its targets outside atmosphere, intercepting the climbing missiles closer to their launch point. The Arrow system is thus a 2-layer system: those missiles which escape destruction by the Arrow 3 closer to Iran will be met by the Arrow system closer to Israel.

Israel also uses an improved version of Raytheon’s Patriot batteries against medium-range missiles. In the first Gulf War, in 1991, Iraq fired thirty-nine Scud missiles at Israel. in the days before the war, the Bush administration rushed Patriot batteries to Israel as part of a deal with Israel not to attack Iraq, but the Patriot missiles of twenty years ago failed to intercept even a single Scud missile.

The Modesto Bee notes that Israeli security officials believe the rocket and missile threat to Israel is growing. In a testimony before a parliamentary panel earlier this year, General Aviv Kokhavi, the head of Israel’s military intelligence, estimated that there are about 200,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel.

The other day, Israel’s Defense Ministry announced that few days ago, a David’s Sling interceptor successfully intercepted the target in a test over the Negev desert. The test’s interceptor did not carry a warhead.

A senior official at Rafael, the Israeli technology company developing the system, said David’s Sling is also capable of interception UAVs.

Ehud Barak, Israel’s defense minister, said yesterday that “the great success of Iron Dome in Operation Pillar of Defense highlights, beyond any doubt, the tremendous significance anti-missile defensive systems have.”

The Bee quotes Uzi Rubin, a former head of Israel’s missile defense program, to say that the David’s Sling will fill a “significant gap” in Israel’s air defenses by protecting against many of the medium range missiles in Hezbollah and Syrian arsenals. It can also be deployed against low flying cruise missiles fired from longer distances.

“Once we finish David’s Sling and Iron Dome and the Arrow, then we’ll have the most advanced capability available to give a multilayer protection to Israeli citizens,” a defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was discussing classified information, told the Bee.