David's Sling shoots down a range of threats, including ballistic missiles
David's Sling, Israel's middle tier of air defense, has successfully shot down new and evolving threats, including rockets, cruise missiles, other missiles, and drones in a series of live-fire exercises, the Defense Ministry said Monday.
David's Sling, manufactured by Rafael, has been in operational use for years, including in the Israel-Hamas War and to defend against threats from Iran and Hezbollah.
According to Rafael's website, David's Sling combines 'innovative steering control, multi-propulsion, and an advanced seeker, it defeats high-volume asymmetric threats, including tactical ballistic missiles and large-caliber rockets.'
Using David's Sling to shoot down ballistic missiles takes some of the pressure and heavy cost off of the Arrow 3, which is produced by Israel Aerospace Industries but is far more expensive.
Originally developed to shoot down cruise missiles, which fly in a more line-drive fashion, David's Sling has evolved to shoot down any of the short-, medium-, or long-range aerial threats Israel faces. Iron Dome shoots down rockets, which fly in a predictable arch.
'The David's Sling system, specifically designed to counter various threats like rockets, missiles, cruise missiles, aircraft, and UAVs, constitutes a central defensive layer within Israel's comprehensive multilayered air- and missile-defense architecture, which also includes the Arrow weapon system, the Iron Dome Defense system, and the near-future Iron Beam system,' the Defense Ministry said.
'We're facing an intense decade ahead that will demand robust offensive and defensive capabilities,' Defense Ministry Director-General Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amir Baram said. 'Our adversaries continue testing our air-defense systems, so we must keep upgrading them while fast-tracking breakthrough technologies that will give us a decisive edge and boost our operational capabilities.
"These successful tests mark another major enhancement to Israel's multi-layered air and missile defense architecture that performed exceptionally during Israel's war with Hamas and Iran, saving countless lives and preventing damage," Baram continued.
Part of the world's leading aerial defense system
'Coming on the heels of the Israel-Iran war, Rafael is proud to conclude this advanced and highly successful series of tests," Rafael CEO Yoav Tourgeman said.
"Alongside recent operational successes, this campaign further cements David's Sling as one of the world's leading air and missile defense systems. The testing integrated new capabilities across a wide range of challenging scenarios, with the system demonstrating outstanding performance against diverse advanced threats," Tourgeman added.
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