The Israel Defense Force calls its mobile air defense system IRON DOME. Tasked with defending civilian and industrial targets it’s been documented to have a very high success rate.
An IDF mission statement for Iron Dome states its purpose is to intercept and destroy short-range rockets and artillery shells. As of late 2012, The Jerusalem Post reported the system’s 90% rate of accuracy successfully intercepted over twelve hundred rockets, most of which were fired from Gaza. Future developments and upgrades are intended to increase the effective range of the system as well as to incorporate the ability of a single battery to intercept targets from two directions at the same time.
A multi-tiered series of similar systems will soon be able to protect off-shore gas platform production, a portion of which Israel is required by law to provide to Gaza.
Written by Richard Paracka
