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The Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) of the Directorate for Defense R&D in the Ministry of Defense, together with the US Missile Defense Agency (MDA), have successfully completed a series of live-fire intercept tests of the DAVID’s SLING weapon system against threat-representative cruise and ballistic missiles. The tests were led by Rafael Advanced Systems from a testing site in central Israel, with the participation of the Israel Air Force (IAF) and Navy. This successful series is a critical milestone in the augmentation of Israel’s operational capabilities in defending itself against current and future threats.

The series tested the capabilities of a new and advanced version of the DAVID’s SLING system, and included a number of scenarios simulating future threats. The results of this test will enable IMDO and industry engineers to evaluate and upgrade the system’s capabilities.

In the framework of the series, the IMDO and Rafael also successfully demonstrated the capabilities of the IRON DOME in intercepting a variety of threats including UAVs and cruise missiles. The test also demonstrated the interoperability of the multilayered air defence mechanism (ARROW, DAVID’s SLING, and IRON DOME). This indicates that the systems will be capable of intercepting threats simultaneously during conflict.

Representatives of the MDA and Israeli defence industries, as well as IAF soldiers, participated in the test. Rafael is the prime contractor for the development of DAVID’s SLING in cooperation with Raytheon company. IAI’s Elta division developed the MMR radar and Elbit Systems developed the Golden Almond BMC. Alongside IRON DOME, ARROW-2 and ARROW-3, DAVID’s SLING is a significant component of Israel’s multi-layered air defence mechanism.

Arie Egozi