TEL AVIV - The U.S.-Israel Arrow program passed another milestone Feb. 22 with the spectacular, nighttime head-on intercept of a long-range target off the California coast.
Part of the ongoing, jointly funded Arrow System Improvement Program, the test validated new Block 4 versions designed to improve discriminating capabilities of the Arrow 2 interceptor, the Green Pine search-and-track radar and the Citron Tree battle management control system.
"To see that explosion off the shores of California was truly gratifying. It was a body-to-body impact that completely destroyed the target," Arieh Herzog, director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) told reporters via teleconference shortly after the nighttime launch at the U.S. Navy's Point Mugu Sea Range.
Herzog said validation of the Block 4 software would provide the Israel Air Force "with a better system than they have now." The software upgrades, he said, improve detection capabilities and lethality needed to defend against "new and different threats."
In a Feb. 22 statement, the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency (MDA) noted that the Green Pine radar successfully detected and tracked the target, transferred information to the Citron Tree management control system and launched the Arrow interceptor, "which performed its planned trajectory and destroyed the target missile."
The MDA statement noted that the test "represented a realistic scenario" and involved operationally ready elements of the Arrow weapon system.
In an interview earlier this month, Herzog said the sea-based target, provided by the MDA and launched from a mobile launch platform, was "representative of threats we face in this theater."
Herzog declined to provide details, but experts here said the target simulated increasingly longer-range missiles equipped with decoys designed to disorient and confuse defensive interceptors. A program official cited projected threats from upgraded versions of Syrian Scud-D and Iranian Shahab, Ashura and BM-25 missiles as drivers for continuous upgrades to Israel's defensive capabilities.
"We need to create all kinds of bodies in space to do discrimination against decoys. These features went into production with the Block 4," the program official said.
Herzog was more reticent on threats driving Block 4 requirements. He acknowledged, however, that Block 4 upgrades "improve the process of discrimination of what happens in the sky and the transmission of target data [to the Citron Tree battle management center] for much better situational control."
Finally, Block 4 upgrades to Arrow 2 interceptors refine midcourse guidance which, when coupled with improved target identification and discrimination capabilities, improves lethality.
Herzog added that Block 4 upgrades would be retrofitted into current Arrow 2 interceptors, as well as other program elements.
Udi Shani, MoD director-general, credited the close cooperation with the Pentagon's MDA and other U.S. defense establishment agencies for supporting the IMDO and Israel's efforts to deploy cutting-edge defense capabilities against escalating threats.
Meanwhile, IMDO and MDA are developing an upper-tier Arrow 3, an exoatmospheric, two-stage intercepting missile that uses pivoting optical sensors and its own upper-stage kick motor instead of separate control rockets to steer itself precisely into incoming targets. The so-called high-divert Arrow 3 is expected to weigh about half that of Arrow 2 and intercept maneuvering targets high in Earth's atmosphere.
In parallel, IMDO is working on a Block 5 upgrade aimed at merging the lower-tier Arrow 2 and the planned exo-atmospheric Arrow 3 into a single national missile defense system. The planned Block 5 Arrow weapon system will include new ground and airborne sensors, a command-and-control system, and a new high-performance target missile to simulate the Iranian Shahab and other potentially nuclear-capable delivery vehicles developed by Tehran.
The MLM Division of Israel Aerospace Industries is prime contractor for Arrow 2 and Arrow 3, with Chicago-based Boeing serving as subcontractor for production of critical components.
Last week's test completes a milestone held in abeyance since a July 2009 so-called "no test" due to software glitches. The glitch occurred when data transferred from the Green Pine radar to the battle management center erroneously showed intercept would take place out of the prescribed safety range, causing automatic mission abort.
Herzog said he expected the Israel Air Force to declare Block 4 versions of the Arrow 2 fully operational later this year.
Part of the ongoing, jointly funded Arrow System Improvement Program, the test validated new Block 4 versions designed to improve discriminating capabilities of the Arrow 2 interceptor, the Green Pine search-and-track radar and the Citron Tree battle management control system.
"To see that explosion off the shores of California was truly gratifying. It was a body-to-body impact that completely destroyed the target," Arieh Herzog, director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) told reporters via teleconference shortly after the nighttime launch at the U.S. Navy's Point Mugu Sea Range.
Herzog said validation of the Block 4 software would provide the Israel Air Force "with a better system than they have now." The software upgrades, he said, improve detection capabilities and lethality needed to defend against "new and different threats."
In a Feb. 22 statement, the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency (MDA) noted that the Green Pine radar successfully detected and tracked the target, transferred information to the Citron Tree management control system and launched the Arrow interceptor, "which performed its planned trajectory and destroyed the target missile."
The MDA statement noted that the test "represented a realistic scenario" and involved operationally ready elements of the Arrow weapon system.
In an interview earlier this month, Herzog said the sea-based target, provided by the MDA and launched from a mobile launch platform, was "representative of threats we face in this theater."
Herzog declined to provide details, but experts here said the target simulated increasingly longer-range missiles equipped with decoys designed to disorient and confuse defensive interceptors. A program official cited projected threats from upgraded versions of Syrian Scud-D and Iranian Shahab, Ashura and BM-25 missiles as drivers for continuous upgrades to Israel's defensive capabilities.
"We need to create all kinds of bodies in space to do discrimination against decoys. These features went into production with the Block 4," the program official said.
Herzog was more reticent on threats driving Block 4 requirements. He acknowledged, however, that Block 4 upgrades "improve the process of discrimination of what happens in the sky and the transmission of target data [to the Citron Tree battle management center] for much better situational control."
Finally, Block 4 upgrades to Arrow 2 interceptors refine midcourse guidance which, when coupled with improved target identification and discrimination capabilities, improves lethality.
Herzog added that Block 4 upgrades would be retrofitted into current Arrow 2 interceptors, as well as other program elements.
Udi Shani, MoD director-general, credited the close cooperation with the Pentagon's MDA and other U.S. defense establishment agencies for supporting the IMDO and Israel's efforts to deploy cutting-edge defense capabilities against escalating threats.
Meanwhile, IMDO and MDA are developing an upper-tier Arrow 3, an exoatmospheric, two-stage intercepting missile that uses pivoting optical sensors and its own upper-stage kick motor instead of separate control rockets to steer itself precisely into incoming targets. The so-called high-divert Arrow 3 is expected to weigh about half that of Arrow 2 and intercept maneuvering targets high in Earth's atmosphere.
In parallel, IMDO is working on a Block 5 upgrade aimed at merging the lower-tier Arrow 2 and the planned exo-atmospheric Arrow 3 into a single national missile defense system. The planned Block 5 Arrow weapon system will include new ground and airborne sensors, a command-and-control system, and a new high-performance target missile to simulate the Iranian Shahab and other potentially nuclear-capable delivery vehicles developed by Tehran.
The MLM Division of Israel Aerospace Industries is prime contractor for Arrow 2 and Arrow 3, with Chicago-based Boeing serving as subcontractor for production of critical components.
Last week's test completes a milestone held in abeyance since a July 2009 so-called "no test" due to software glitches. The glitch occurred when data transferred from the Green Pine radar to the battle management center erroneously showed intercept would take place out of the prescribed safety range, causing automatic mission abort.
Herzog said he expected the Israel Air Force to declare Block 4 versions of the Arrow 2 fully operational later this year.
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