Israel's Arrow-3: A leap in defence technology against Iranian missiles

The Israeli anti-missile defence system successfully defended against a salvo of 120 Iranian ballistic missiles, of which only a few penetrated the defence. Many recordings documenting these shootdowns have appeared online, including those in outer space.

Israel began work on the Arrow-3 system in 2007, considering developing a domestic system to be a safer option in terms of security and supply assurance compared to purchasing the American THAAD system THAAD. However, this does not mean complete independence; ultimately, 50% of the missile components are produced in the USA.

The work was complicated, and the system's first test was conducted only in 2013. After several unsuccessful attempts, the first ballistic missile shootdown occurred in 2019. The first successful shootdown took place on 22 January 2019, and the second on 28 January 2019, related to testing integration with the AN/TPY-2 radar.

In the same year, Israel and the USA signed an agreement for the joint serial production of Arrow-3 system components, which the Americans also generously funded. It should be added that from 2008 to 2019, the total American financial contribution to the development of the system amounted to £3.1 billion.

This system can combat targets at a distance of up to nearly 2,400 km and at altitudes over 100 km, enabling the elimination of targets in low Earth orbit. The missile design is based on two stages: the first aims to reach a specific height, while the second segment contains a directional 150 kg fragmentation warhead.

This part is also equipped with an active radar-guided warhead and its own rocket engine with thrust vectoring, providing the very good manoeuvrability necessary to hit the target. The high interception altitude also aims to protect Israel from missiles with chemical or nuclear warheads, whose shootdown in the atmosphere at low altitudes could have catastrophic consequences.