The Israel Missile defence Organization (IMDO), of the Directorate of defence Research and Development (DDR&D), in the Israel Ministry of defence, together with the U.S. Missile defence Agency (MDA), completed a successful test campaign of the Arrow 3 weapon system. The campaign was led by the Ministry of defence and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), and conducted in a testing field located in Alaska, U.S. with the participation of the Israeli defence industries and the Israeli Air force.
The Arrow 3 weapon system is designed to intercept exo-atmospheric ballistic missiles. Flight Test Arrow 01 successfully demonstrated hit-to-kill interceptions of high altitude exo-atmospheric targets. During the campaign, the U.S. AN-TPY2 radar was used and operational interoperability was validated successfully. The flight tests were conducted in Alaska in order to test capabilities that may not be tested in Israel.
IMDO Director, Moshe Patel: “Ten challenging years of development and work have culminated in this moment: the Arrow 3 weapon system completed a test campaign, during which an Arrow 3 interceptor completed full interception of the target. This is an extraordinary operational and technological achievement for the State of Israel, made possible by thousands of employees, engineers and officers from the Ministry of defence, Israeli defence industries, Israeli Air Force, and our U.S. partners. In addition, the fact that the test was conducted in Alaska, tens of thousands of kilometers away from Israel, is another significant achievement that demonstrates the operational capabilities of the Arrow 3 system to successfully face any threat. This impressive and unique cooperation emphasizes the deep strategic partnership between the US and Israel in the field of Missile defence.”
MDA Director, Vice Adm. John Hill: “These successful tests mark a major milestone in the development of the Arrow Weapon System. This unique success in Alaska provides confidence in future Israeli capabilities to defeat the developing threats in the region. My congratulations to the Israel Missile defence Organization, our MDA team, and our industry partners. We are committed to assisting the Government of Israel in upgrading its national missile defence capability to defend the State of Israel and deployed U.S. forces from emerging threats.”
Boaz Levi, IAI EVP & GM of Systems, Missiles and Space group: “IAI is proud to lead the development of the Arrow 3 weapon system for the security of the State of Israel along with the Israeli defence Industry, Israel Ministry of defence, IDF and our US partners. The test campaign that has been conducted has been one of the most complicated tests that have ever been conducted by the State of Israel, out of borders, far away from home, in Alaska. We’ve executed successful multi-system interception tests, overcoming many engineering challenges.”
The primary contractor for the development of the Arrow Weapon System interceptor is MLM of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). The Elsira Company, a subsidiary of Elbit systems, developed the BMC system. Boeing, Tomer, and Rafael are the main subcontractors for the development and integration of the interceptor. Rafael is the company responsible for the development of the Sparrow target missile and other components of the weapon system.
The complex mission of deploying the Arrow 3 system to Alaska was led by the Department of Production and Procurement and the Director of Security for the defence Establishment, as well as the Israel Ministry of defence Mission to New York.
The Arrow 3 Weapon System is a major component of Israel’s multi-layered defence array, which is developed by the Israel Missile defence Organization in the Israel Ministry of defence. This defence array consists of four layers: the Iron Dome, David’s Sling, Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 weapon systems. The success of this test represents an important milestone in the operational capabilities of the State of Israel in defending itself against current and future threats.
Successful Experiments in Arrow 3 weapon system in Alaska
