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Israel’s elaborate air defence system was used to counter hundreds missiles and drones fired by Iran on Tuesday evening.
Different elements of the system are used for different threats.
In recent months, it has been used to defend against attacks by Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah on the Lebanese border as well as Houthi rebels from Yemen.
Israel has a number of air defence systems that are designed to intercept missiles from different heights and altitudes.
Iron Dome is the most famous of Israel’s missile defenses. It is designed to intercept short range rockets as well as mortars and shells at distances between 4km and70km from the missile launcher.
David’s Sling can destroy missiles with a longer range, cruise missiles or medium-range missiles.
The Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 systems protect against medium-range missiles and long-range missiles that are up to 2,400km from the system.
Israel is believed to have used all of its missile defence systems in order to counter Iran’s most recent attack, which included around 180 missiles. Some of these missiles struck Israeli territory.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran (IRGC) claimed that 90% of their projectiles hit their target. Israel said that most of the projectiles were intercepted.
This is the second attack on Israel by Iran in this year. In April, it launched hundreds of missiles and drones.
Iron Dome is the most combat-tested system of air defence in the world. This is due to the number of missiles fired by Hamas, other militant groups in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon in recent years.
Iron Dome batteries are located throughout Israel. Each battery consists of three or four launchers that each contain 20 interceptor missiles.
Iron Dome uses radar to track and detect incoming rockets, and then calculates which are most likely to land in populated areas. The missiles are fired at these rockets while the rest fall on open land.
Iron Dome is a missile defense system that Israel Defense Forces (IDF), has claimed to destroy 90% of the rockets they target. The “Tamir”, or “Tamir”-type missiles, are estimated to cost around $50,000 each.
The system was created after the “Summer War 2006” between Israel and Hezbollah. The group, which is based in Lebanon, fired nearly 4,000 missiles into Israel causing massive damage and killing dozens.
Iron Dome, designed by Israeli firms Rafael Advanced Defense Systems (RADS) and Israel Aerospace Industries with some US assistance, was deployed in 2011.
In that year it was used for the first time in combat, intercepting a missile fired from Gaza.
Since October 2023 Iron Dome missiles intercepted tens thousands of rockets fired from Gaza by Hamas, and other militant groups.
David’s Sling (also known as “Magic Wand” or “Magic Wand in Hebrew”) can intercept missiles from up to 300km.
It was developed jointly by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and the US’s Raytheon. It started operating in 2017.
The “Stunners” are designed to shoot down ballistic missiles of all ranges, including short-range, medium-range and long distances from low altitudes. David’s Sling, like Iron Dome only targets missiles that threaten populated areas.
Both David’s Sling (also known as Iron Dome) and Iron Dome can intercept drones, cruise missiles, and aircraft.
Each David’s Sling costs around $1m.
The system was used to shoot down an Hezbollah ballistic missile launched from Lebanon in September 2024.
The IDF stated that this was a Qadr-1 made by Iran – a ballistic missile with a range of up to 1,000km and a warhead weighing between 700kg and 1000kg.
Hezbollah claimed that the missile was aimed directly at the Mossad headquarters in Tel Aviv. However, the IDF stated that it was headed towards a residential neighborhood.
David’s Sling, a militant group from Gaza, also used it in May 2023 to launch over 1,100 missiles against Israel. Israel claims to have shot down 96% rockets that posed a danger.
Arrow 2 is designed for the destruction of short-range and intermediate-range ballistic missiles as they fly through the upper atmosphere at about 50km above Earth.
After the First Gulf War of 1991, Iraq fired dozens Scud missiles made in the Soviet Union into Israel. It was put into service in 2000.
It can detect missiles up to 500km away. It can intercept them at a relatively short range, up to 100km away from the launch site.
It can fire up to 14 targets simultaneously.
In 2017, Arrow 2 was used for the first time to shoot down a Syrian air-to-surface missile.
Arrow 3 was deployed for the first time in 2017. It is designed to intercept ballistic missiles that are traveling at the top of the arc, beyond the Earth’s atmospheric layer. It has a 2,400km range.
In 2023, it was used for the first time in combat to intercept a missile fired by the Houthi rebels from Yemen at the southern Israeli coastal city of Eilat.
The system was developed with the help of Boeing, a US company, by Israel Aerospace Industries.
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