Global Courant
Israel has unveiled a hypersonic missile intercept concept, a pioneering effort to bolster its defenses against Iran’s perceived hypersonic threat and access emerging European and US markets for counterhysonic defense.
Breaking Defense reported this month, Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems unveiled its Sky Sonic hypersonic interceptor missile at the Paris Air Show, with a view to winning European missile defense contracts.
The report notes that Sky Sonic, which has been in development for several years and has not been tested, uses hit-to-kill technology and is designed with an open architecture for maximum flexibility.
It also mentions that Rafael presented the project to the US, with the latter apparently giving positive feedback.
In a company statement, Rafael said, “Successful defense against hypersonic threats requires a multifaceted approach that not only counters their speed, but also effectively tracks, detects and intercepts their unpredictable flight paths.”
The pressure on Israel to develop counter hypersonic defenses has likely become more urgent as arch-rival Iran claims to have developed a hypersonic weapon.
This month, Global Courant reported that Iran publicly unveiled its first hypersonic missile, the “Fattah” or “opener” in Farsi. Iranian state media showed what appears to be a maneuverable reentry vehicle mounted on a ballistic missile body.
Iranian state media also claimed that the Fattah could travel up to Mach 15, has a range of 1,400 kilometers, uses solid propellant technology and has a movable nozzle for high maneuverability.
Iran unveils its new “Fattah” missile, which Tehran says has a range of 1,400 kilometers and can reach hypersonic speeds. Image: Twitter
However, there is reason to doubt Iran’s hypersonic claims as the Islamic Republic is known to exaggerate its military capabilities for propaganda purposes. First, current hypersonic missile technology supports designs that fly up to Mach 5-6, so Iran’s claims of Mach 15 seem exaggerated.
Further, established hypersonic technology pioneers such as China, Russia and the US, all with more resources and expertise than Iran, have faced various difficulties in their hypersonic weapons programs, further casting doubt on Iran’s claim .
Israel is not taking any chances. In addition to the planned Sky Sonic hypersonic missile interceptor, Israel is also investing in alternative missile defense systems, including the use of lasers.
Lasers have several advantages over missile-based defense systems, namely instant hits, low cost per shot, and scalable power. However, they have drawbacks such as huge power consumption, decreasing power over distance and sensitivity to atmospheric conditions.
Global Courant reported in February 2022 that Israel plans to build a “laser wall” in its southern regions to defend against rockets, missiles, drones and other long-range threats from Iran and its allies.
In 2014, Israel unveiled its Iron Dome missile defense laser. At the time, however, Israeli officials concluded that the technology had not yet matured, with its limited range meaning it could not replace missile-based defenses, but could be effective against very close-range targets.
Despite that setback, lasers could be the future of missile defense. Global Courant noted in May 2022 that future missile defense concepts could emphasize endpoint defense rather than broad coverage.
While global and regional missile-based defense systems won’t become obsolete overnight, they can be augmented by numerous directed-energy weapons, such as lasers, to launch rockets, missiles, loitering munitions, and possibly hypersonic weapons into their final stages of flight. destroy.
However, since missiles destroy their targets immediately on impact, a laser must be aimed at the target for a few seconds to destroy it, which may not be feasible for hypersonic targets moving at Mach 5 or faster.
Despite Israel’s prowess in missile defense, it faces greater systemic challenges, such as disjointed systems, limited capacity against a saturation attack, and a tendency to favor military rather than diplomatic solutions.
In an interview in May 2023 for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Moshe Patel, director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO), noted that the biggest challenge for Israel’s missile defense is to integrate diverse systems to target a variety of air and intercept ballistic threats.
Global Courant noted in May 2023 that disjointed air and missile defense systems may be ineffective against an adversary deploying a wide variety of improvised and advanced weapons such as home-made missiles, suicide drones, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and even hypersonic weapons.
Unlinked air and missile defense systems are a recipe for failure against an opponent with a diverse arsenal.
No missile defense system is 100% foolproof, and Israel’s famous Iron Dome is no exception. In a May 2021 Forbes article, David Hambling notes that the Iron Dome has a high but unknown “saturation point” – the maximum number of missiles it can handle at once. Hambling notes that excess missiles will come through once that unknown limit is crossed.
Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system is launched to intercept a missile launched from the Gaza Strip over the southern Israeli city of Ashdod on May 17, 2021. Photo: Global Courant Files/AFP/Ahmad Gharabli
Hambling also points to the disproportionate cost between the Iron Dome’s finite supply of Tamir interceptors, which cost $50,000 per round, versus $500 to $1,000 for Hamas and Hezbollah’s homemade missiles, and $20,000 for the hanging Shahed munitions from Iran.
Hambling also notes that the high effectiveness of missile defense systems may be a strategic liability, as missile strikes against Israel cause relatively minor damage, often making Israel’s military responses appear heavy-handed and disproportionate to international observers.
He notes that Israel’s over-reliance on its missile defenses, such as Iron Dome, David’s Sling and, in the future, Sky Sonic, means their failure could be seen by the Israeli government as a dereliction of duty to defend its people.
That potential failure could force the Israeli government to launch large-scale military offensives to take out enemy missile and drone launch sites or even launch preemptive strikes against Iranwith potentially serious consequences for escalation if Tehran pursues a nuclear bomb.
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