The Israel Missile Defence Organisation’s (IMDO) Directorate of Defence Research and Development has conducted a new trial of the David’s Sling Weapon System (DSWS) in central Israel.
Conducted in collaboration with the US Missile Defense Agency (MDA), the trial was the third in a series of tests of the Stunner interceptor for the weapon, and witnessed successful intercept of threat representative targets.
Launched both from the ground and the air, the targets were identified by DSWS’s multi-mission radar (MMR), which passed the data to the firing centre before the David’s Sling interceptor was launched to destroy its target as planned, as reported by Ynetnews.
Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon said: "This is a successful project, and we believe it will be operational next year."
David’s Sling manufacturer, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems air defence head colonel Fini Youngman was quoted by Jerusalem Online as saying: "The process of a series of tests was fully operational and widely deployed.
"In fact, we simulated threats that were launched to shut down an attack on Israel.
"In the series of tests we examined all system components, from the discovery and identification of the threats of a variety of targets, through building plans to launch interceptors for long and short range, high and low."
Built in collaboration with Raytheon, DSWS is a surface-to-air missile system designed to intercept medium-to-long-range rockets and cruise missiles, fired at ranges of 40km to 300km.
Also known as Magic Wand, the system is developed to work alongside the Iron Dome, Patriot and Arrow missile systems as the future of Israel’s aerial defence formation, and features its own interception management centre, where the operators would launch orders on future interceptions of aerial threats.
In March 2015, Israel requested US Congress provide $317m for David’s Sling and other domestic missile defence programmes, which is in addition to $158m already requested by the Obama administration in its 2016 budget, Reuters reported.
Image: David’s Sling Weapons System Stunner Missile intercepts target during inaugural flight test at an undisclosed location. Photo: courtesy of United States Missile Defense Agency.
