David's Sling and Arrow, the anti-missile systems protecting Israel together with Iron Dome

Iran launched more than 200 ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday and the attack once again put the spotlight on Tel Aviv's defence systems that protect it against a range of missiles, ranging from ballistic missiles capable of flying above the atmosphere to low-flying cruise missiles and rockets.

Israel's Iron Dome system is the one most people know about. However, there are other systems as well which the country uses, depending on the type of rocket fired.

The Iron Dome system is used to shoot down unguided short-range rocket systems fired at Israel by both Hezbollah and Hamas. It made headlines following Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7 last year.

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The country has at least 10 Iron Dome batteries. A radar on each of them detects rockets and estimates the threat posed by them using a command-and-control system. If the rocket is found to be moving towards a populated area, the Iron Dome fires missiles from the ground to destroy it in the air.

However, according to the country’s Missile Defense Organization (IMDO), the Iron Dome is the bottom layer of Israel’s missile defence.

To target guided ballistic missiles travelling at higher altitudes, longer ranges, and faster speeds, Israel uses different intercept systems. This includes David’s Sling and the Arrow 2 and 3. The home-grown air defence systems can bring down medium-range and long-range ballistic missiles.

David’s Sling Defence System

David’s Sling makes use of Stunner and SkyCeptor kinetic hit-to-kill interceptors to hit missiles. It has a range of 25 to 186 miles, according to the Missile Threat project at the Center for International and Strategic Studies (CSIS).

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It was built as part of a joint project of Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense System and US defence giant Raytheon. Defence contractor Rafael is also behind making the Iron Dome.

It is a two-stage missile and has no warhead. It uses sheer force to destroy incoming ballistic missiles and is therefore known as a “hit-to-kill” because it is like hitting a bullet with a bullet.

Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 Defence Systems

Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 systems, jointly developed with the United States, come next above David’s Sling. The two systems are capable of handling much longer-range missiles, like Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), as they travel at altitudes beyond the Earth’s atmosphere. They are similar to the US military’s THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) air defence system.

Arrow 2 can destroy incoming ballistic missiles in their terminal phase in the upper atmosphere by exploding near a missile, according to the CSIS. It has a range of 56 miles and a maximum altitude of 32 miles, according to the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance.

Meanwhile, Arrow 3 uses hit-to-kill technology and can intercept incoming ballistic missiles in space, long before they reenter the atmosphere while zooming towards the target. It reportedly has a range of 1,500 miles and can reach an altitude of 100 miles.

Notably, all three of them were used to defend against the Iranian missile attack last April. They brought down 99 per cent of the more than 300 drones, ballistic and cruise missiles launched by Tehran.