Along with the so-called Iron Dome, it constitutes an essential part of the Israeli defense system. The program was developed in collaboration with the United States.
The tensions in Middle East They only intensified since the war broke out.
After the militant group Hamas carry out a direct offensive against Israel On October 7, 2023, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government responded with continued attacks against the Gaza Strip.
This first episode is gone around 1,200 dead and 250 hostages .
On the other hand, attacks by Israeli forces generated more than 41,000 victims as reported by Gaza health authorities.
The conflict also opened up on other fronts and a series of Cross attacks between Israel and Hamas allies in the region .
Among the latter are members of the call Axis of resistance an alliance that also includes Iran, Hezbollah, the Syrian government, Yemen’s Houthis and armed groups from Syria and Iraq.
The common objective of these parties is counteract the influence of Israel and USA in the Middle East.
October 7, 2024 marks the first anniversary of the outbreak of war and, so far, There are no signs that a ceasefire is about to take place. .
Instead, the agents armed have expanded .
After Israeli forces managed to assassinate Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah with airstrikes on positions in Beirut in late September, They began ground raids in southern Lebanon .
For his part, Iran launched missiles against Israel on October 1 an action for which Prime Minister Netanyahu promised there would be retaliation.
These are just a few of the many attacks that threaten the possibility of starting an ever-widening war .
While the war lasts, For Israel, its defense systems have been crucial .
One of the most notable parts is he Iron Dome an anti-missile system that can identify enemy rockets and fire missiles to intercept them .
However, This is not the only key element for Israel .
They also have an anti-missile system called Arrow 3, developed in collaboration with the United States .
Nevertheless, This has different features. to those of also called Iron Dome.
What does the Arrow 3 anti-missile system look like?
The anti-missile system Arrow 3 aims to intercept long-range missiles .
This is the third generation of a model that It is a two-stage interceptor rocket capable of reaching the exosphere, that is, the upper layer of the Earth’s atmosphere. located at an altitude of more than 500 kilometers.
According to a report from Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), allows reach targets at a distance of 2,400 kilometers .
“The Arrow 3 interceptor Interacts with the Arrow weapons system, which includes a launcher, ground radar and combat management system », specifies the group of experts in its report.
Similarly, security analyst Jonathan Marcus told BBC in 2019 that “Arrow 3 is the latest version of Israel’s longest-range missile interceptor” .
“In itself, It is part of a multi-layered defensive system intended to protect against missile attacks. ballistic,” added the specialist.
One of the most significant points of this system is that guided by x-ray radar .
Information collected by Reuters They claim that long-range interceptors Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 were designed with the Iranian missile threat in mind .
In Marcus’ words, the development of the Arrow 3 “represents a significant technical achievement in its own right, but also highlights the close strategic relationship between Israel and the United States” .
Why Israel and the United States developed the Arrow 3 anti-missile system
The system was developed by Israel and the United States in the aftermath of the 1991 Gulf War according to the BBC.
During this conflict, Israel was hit by 39 Scud missiles launched by Iraq .
With this episode in mind, it was agreed to work on an air defense system capable of intercepting projectiles at a safe distance .
According to the CSIS report, The Arrow 3 entered an initial phase in August 2007, then began development in mid-March 2008. .
The first flight test of the system took place on February 25, 2013 and there “an exoatmospheric trajectory through space” could be established to verify its propulsion system.
The Arrow 3 entered production at full capacity in August 2017. Approximately 50% of system components are produced in the United States .
The figures recovered by the aforementioned group of experts detail that, Between 2008 and 2019, the North American country provided nearly $1.2 billion in development and procurement assistance. of this model.
To this amount are added nearly $3.8 billion for the Arrow weapons system in total .
In 2019, Israel and the United States signed a co-production agreement for Arrow 3 and in September of the same year they began “full production” of the system.
For fiscal year 2021, the National Defense Authorization Act allocated $77 million for the development and co-production of Arrow 3 according to CSIS.
The Israeli military stated that The first time they used it since the start of the war on October 7, 2023 was on the 31st of the same month and year. .
It was deployed, according to statements collected by Reuters, with the aim ofand intercept a surface-to-surface missile fired from the Red Sea area towards Israeli territory .
Source: Latercera
I am David Jack and I have been working in the news industry for over 10 years. As an experienced journalist, I specialize in covering sports news with a focus on golf. My articles have been published by some of the most respected publications in the world including The New York Times and Sports Illustrated.
