David's Sling
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David's Sling ( he, קלע דוד, Kela David), also formerly known as Magic Wand ( he , שרביט קסמים, Sharvit Ksamim , links= no), is an
Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...
military system being jointly developed by the Israeli
defense contractor The arms industry, also known as the arms trade, is a global industry which manufactures and sells weapons and military technology. It consists of a commercial industry involved in the research and development, engineering, production, and serv ...
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. ( he, רפאל - מערכות לחימה מתקדמות בע"מ, formerly Rafael Armament Development Authority), ("Rafael" from Hebrew acronym of "Authority for the Development of Armaments" - ) is an Israel ...
and the American defense contractor
Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitaliza ...
, designed to intercept enemy planes, drones,
tactical ballistic missile A tactical ballistic missile (TBM), or battlefield range ballistic missile (BRBM), is a ballistic missile designed for short-range battlefield use. Typically, range is less than . Tactical ballistic missiles are usually mobile to ensure sur ...
s, medium- to long-range
rocket A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
s and
cruise missiles A cruise missile is a guided missile used against terrestrial or naval targets that remains in the atmosphere and flies the major portion of its flight path at approximately constant speed. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead ...
, fired at ranges from 40 km (24.85 miles) to 300 km (186.41 miles). David's Sling is meant to replace the
MIM-23 Hawk The Raytheon MIM-23 HAWK ("Homing all the way killer") is an American medium-range surface-to-air missile. It was designed to be a much more mobile counterpart to the MIM-14 Nike Hercules, trading off range and altitude capability for a much sm ...
and
MIM-104 Patriot The MIM-104 Patriot is a surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, the primary of its kind used by the United States Army and several allied states. It is manufactured by the U.S. defense contractor Raytheon and derives its name from the radar compon ...
in the Israeli arsenal.. The system's Stunner missile is designed to intercept the newest generation of tactical ballistic missiles at low altitude, such as the Russian Iskander and the Chinese
DF-15 The Dong-Feng 15 (a.k.a. DF-15, M-9, CSS-6) is a short-range ballistic missile developed by the People's Republic of China. The DF-15 and the newer DF-16 are thought to be the only non-nuclear missiles in use by the People's Liberation Army Rock ...
using an on-board dual CCD/ IR seekers to distinguish between decoys and the actual
warhead A warhead is the forward section of a device that contains the explosive agent or toxic (biological, chemical, or nuclear) material that is delivered by a missile, rocket, torpedo, or bomb. Classification Types of warheads include: * Explosiv ...
of the missile, in addition to tracking by
Elta ELTA may mean one of the following: Broadcasting * ELTA 1 HD, the first commercial HD cable television channel in Bosnia and Herzegovina * ELTA 2, a commercial music television channel in Bosnia and Herzegovina * , a television channel in Taiwan O ...
EL/M-2084 The ELM-2084 is an Israeli ground-based mobile 3D AESA multi-mission radar (MMR) family produced by ELTA, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries. The radar is capable of detecting and tracking both aircraft and ballistic targets and providin ...
Active electronically scanned array An active electronically scanned array (AESA) is a type of phased array antenna, which is a computer-controlled array antenna in which the beam of radio waves can be electronically steered to point in different directions without moving the an ...
multi-mode radar. The multi-stage interceptor consists of a
solid-fuel rocket motor A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket with a rocket engine that uses solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel rockets powered by gunpowder; they were used in warfare by the Arabs, Chinese, Persia ...
booster Booster may refer to: Amusement rides * Booster (Fabbri ride), a pendulum ride * Booster (HUSS ride), an evolution of the Breakdance ride * Booster (KMG ride), a pendulum ride Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Booster, a cha ...
, followed by an asymmetrical
kill vehicle Kill vehicle is a term from space weapon development and science fiction which denotes either a kinetic projectile or an explosive warhead supposed to impact on or (in the case of the warhead) near a target. It is the final missile stage of an inte ...
with advanced steering for super-maneuverability during the kill-stage. A three-pulse motor provides additional acceleration and maneuverability during the terminal phase. David's Sling became operational in April 2017. David's Sling is meant to bolster the second tier of Israel's theater missile defense system. The name David's Sling comes from the biblical story of
David and Goliath Goliath ( ) ''Goləyāṯ''; ar, جُليات ''Ǧulyāt'' (Christian term) or (Quranic term). is a character in the Book of Samuel, described as a Philistine giant defeated by the young David in single combat. The story signified King Saul's ...
. It will form one level of Israel's future multi-tiered missile defense system that Israel is developing, which will also include
Arrow 2 The Arrow or ''Hetz'' ( he , חֵץ, ) is a family of anti-ballistic missiles designed to fulfill an Israeli requirement for a missile defense system that would be more effective against ballistic missiles than the MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air ...
,
Arrow 3 The Arrow 3 or ''Hetz 3'' ( he, חֵץ 3, ) is an exoatmospheric hypersonic anti-ballistic missile, jointly funded, developed and produced by Israel and the United States. Undertaken by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Boeing, it is overse ...
,
Iron Dome Iron Dome ( he, כִּפַּת בַּרְזֶל, Kippat Barzel) is a mobile all-weather air defense system developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries. The system is designed to intercept and destroy short- ...
, and Barak 8 and
Iron Beam Iron Beam ( he, קֶרֶן בַּרְזֶל, '), officially מגן אור, ', "Light Shield", is a directed-energy weapon air defense system which was unveiled at the Singapore Airshow on February 11, 2014 by Israeli defense contractor Rafael Adv ...
from as early as 2020.


Development

The interceptor is a two-stage
missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocket i ...
, with two targeting and guidance systems installed in its nose-tip (a
radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...
and an electro-optical sensor). In 2006 Rafael was awarded a contract to develop a defense system to counter the threat of medium- to long-range rockets with ranges between . In order to enable Israel to make use of the financial aid provided by the United States to further develop the system and to produce it, a partnership was established with Raytheon which developed the missile firing unit and overall logistic system and assisted Rafael with developing the interceptor. In some of Raytheon's publications, the interceptor is referred to as "Stunner". In November 2012, David's Sling was expected to enter operational service in 2013 or 2014. David's Sling owes much to the
SPYDER The SPYDER ("Surface-to-air Python and Derby") is an Israeli short and medium range mobile air defence system developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems with assistance from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). Rafael is the prime contractor a ...
programme's modified Python 5 and DERBY seeker technology. In addition to the David's Sling system, which is designed to intercept medium- and long-range rockets, the
Iron Dome Iron Dome ( he, כִּפַּת בַּרְזֶל, Kippat Barzel) is a mobile all-weather air defense system developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries. The system is designed to intercept and destroy short- ...
system, a separate system with which it will be used in conjunction, designed to intercept short-range rockets (4–70 km), and the Arrow missile, a separate system designed to intercept
ballistic missile A ballistic missile is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are guided only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles stay within the ...
s, are already in use. On 25 November 2012, Israel successfully tested the Stunner interceptor missile. The David's Sling battery, stationed at an undisclosed desert location in Southern Israel, fired and destroyed the incoming missile with a two-stage interceptor. In late November 2014, the IDF revealed that the David's Sling system would soon be deployed in various areas around Israel for a trial period before becoming operational. Initial trials will focus on its ability to intercept short and medium-range rockets and missiles with a range of coverage three times greater than Iron Dome. After that, the system needs to undergo two further trials, testing its ability to intercept aircraft and longer-range missiles and then cruise missiles. David's Sling will be linked up to the Home Front Command's command and control systems, as well as also having its own independent interception management center. In February 2015, Israel asked the US Congress for $250M in additional assistance in producing David's Sling. US Companies that would be awarded contracts include Raytheon Co.; Arlington, Virginia-based Orbital ATK Inc.; and Falls Church, Virginia-based Northrop Grumman Corp. Other defense websites reported that Israel had requested US$150M in funding for the procurement phase, which will include two systems controlling multiple fire units, covering the entire area of Israel. Still other sources said development costs for David's Sling were capped to around $250M so far. The $150M request is for initial procurement of one or two batteries. Since two batteries can cover the whole territory of Israel it is clear that Israeli initial procurement will start with just two batteries. David's Sling was planned to be deployed in 2015, but budget shortfalls for infrastructure for deployable missile batteries delayed its operational date to 2017. On 21 December 2015, the David's Sling Weapon System (DSWS) demonstrated its ability to destroy salvos of heavy long-range rockets and short-range ballistic missiles, completing the first block of developmental tests. With the testing regimen completed, the system is slated for delivery to the
Israeli Air Force The Israeli Air Force (IAF; he, זְרוֹעַ הָאֲוִיר וְהֶחָלָל, Zroa HaAvir VeHahalal, tl, "Air and Space Arm", commonly known as , ''Kheil HaAvir'', "Air Corps") operates as the aerial warfare branch of the Israel Defense ...
in the first quarter of 2016. David's Sling will protect areas above the short-range Iron Dome and under the upper-atmospheric Arrow-2, particularly against threats like the Russian
9K720 Iskander The 9K720 Iskander (russian: «Искандер»; NATO reporting name SS-26 Stone) is a mobile short-range ballistic missile system produced and deployed by the Russian military. The missile systems () are to replace the obsolete OTR-21 ''Toc ...
tactical ballistic missiles, the Syrian
Khaibar-1 The Khaibar-1 ( ar, خيبر-1), also known as the Khyber-1, the M-302, or the B-302 is a Syrian-made 302 mm unguided artillery rocket. It is best known for being used by Hezbollah against targets in northern Israel during the 2006 Lebanon ...
302 mm rockets and the Iranian
Fateh-110 The Fateh-110 ( fa, فاتح-۱۱۰ "conqueror"), also known as NP-110 is an Iranian solid-fueled surface-to-surface ballistic missile produced by Iran's Aerospace Industries Organization since 2002. It is single-stage, road-mobile and can carr ...
used by Hezbollah, as well as the
Scud-B The R-17 Elbrus, GRAU index 9K72 is a tactical ballistic missile, initially developed by the Soviet Union. It is also known by its NATO reporting name SS-1C Scud-B. It is one of several Soviet missiles to carry the reporting name Scud; the most ...
. On 2 April 2017, at a ceremony held at
Hatzor Airbase Hatzor Israeli Air Force Base ( he, בָּסִיס חֵיל-הַאֲוִויר חָצוֹר) , also titled Kanaf 4 (''lit.'' Wing 4) is an Israeli Air Force military air base, located in central Israel near kibbutz Hatzor after which it is named. ...
attended by Israeli and United States dignitaries, two batteries of the David's Sling Weapon System were officially declared operational, activating the final component of the Israeli multi-tiered anti-missile defense array. Work is underway on an air launched variant.


Operational history

On 23 July 2018, David's Sling was used for the first time in a combat situation. According to Israeli sources, Israeli authorities said they initially feared that two Syrian
OTR-21 Tochka OTR-21 ''Tochka'' (russian: оперативно-тактический ракетный комплекс (ОТР) «Точка» (" point"); en, Tactical Operational Missile Complex "Tochka") is a Soviet tactical ballistic missile. Its GRAU des ...
missiles were headed for Israel. Ultimately the two Syrian short-range ballistic missiles—fired as part of the country's internal fighting and not deliberately aimed at Israel—did not clear the border and landed one kilometer inside Syria. One of the interceptors was detonated over Israel. In November 2019, Chinese media reports claimed that the
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
ns captured the other missile, which was transferred to them by
Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
. The missile was found intact by Syrian military forces, as it did not explode on contact after being fired in July 2018.


Foreign interest

On 17 November 2010, in an interview Rafael's Vice President Mr. Lova Drori confirmed that the David's Sling system has been offered to the
Indian Armed Forces The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Armed Forces are supported by ...
. In October 2015, it became publicized that all six countries of the
Gulf Cooperation Council The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf ( ar, مجلس التعاون لدول العربية الخليج ), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; ar, مجلس التعاون الخليجي), is a regional, interg ...
(GCC) were interested in procuring the Israeli David's Sling missile defense system as a response to the Iranian missile threat. This comes after U.S. urging for GCC members to more closely cooperate on missile defense through joint procurement and information sharing. Any deal however would occur between Raytheon and other American companies, partly because of their involvement in the development of the system, and partly because of continuing local attitudes towards Israel. In September 2018, the Swiss armaments procurement agency
armasuisse The Federal Office for Defence Procurement (Armasuisse) is a federal agency of the Swiss Confederation. It is the procurement organization for armaments of Switzerland and is affiliated with the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection ...
announced its interest to receive proposals regarding the David's Sling system for the renewal of Switzerland's air defence capacities. On 5 March 2022, the
Finnish Defence Forces The Finnish Defence Forces ( fi, Puolustusvoimat, sv, Försvarsmakten) are the military of Finland. The Finnish Defence Forces consist of the Finnish Army, the Finnish Navy and the Finnish Air Force. In wartime the Finnish Border Guard (which i ...
announced that the final two contenders for a future high-altitude air-defence system will be Rafael's David's Sling and
Israel Aerospace Industries Israel Aerospace Industries (Hebrew: התעשייה האווירית לישראל ''ha-ta'asiya ha-avirit le-yisra'el'') or IAI (תע"א) is Israel's major aerospace and aviation manufacturer, producing aerial and astronautic systems for both mi ...
Barak-MX, with the final decision slated for early 2023.


SkyCeptor (PAAC-4)

In July 2013, Raytheon revealed it was working with international partners to develop a new air-defense missile system. The system is based on the AN/MPQ-53 radar from the
MIM-104 Patriot The MIM-104 Patriot is a surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, the primary of its kind used by the United States Army and several allied states. It is manufactured by the U.S. defense contractor Raytheon and derives its name from the radar compon ...
, a
Kongsberg Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud, Viken county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production ...
/Raytheon Fire Direction Center, and the
Rafael Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California * Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Israeli manufacturer of weapons and military technology * Hurricane Rafael, a 2012 hurricane Fiction * ''R ...
Stunner surface-to-air missile. According to Lt. Gen. Henry Obering, former director of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, "We wanted a truly co-managed program because the United States will be very interested in this for our own purposes." In August 2013, Raytheon and Rafael began to seek funding for a fourth-generation Patriot intercepting system, called the ''Patriot Advanced Affordable Capability-4 (PAAC-4)''. The system aims to integrate the Stunner interceptor from the jointly funded David's Sling program with Patriot PAC-3 radars, launchers, and engagement control stations. The two-stage, multimode seeking Stunner would replace single-stage, radar-guided PAC-3 missiles produced by
Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...
. Government and industry sources claim the Stunner-based PAAC-4 interceptors will offer improved operational performance at 20 percent of the $2 million unit cost of the Lockheed-built PAC-3 missiles. The companies are seeking $20 million in U.S. government funding to demonstrate cost and performance claims through a prototype PAAC-4 system. Israeli program officials have said that a previous teaming agreement between Raytheon and Rafael would allow the U.S. company to assume prime contractor status, and produce at least 60 percent of the Stunner missile in the United States. The Missile Defense Agency has said that the U.S. Army is considering use of the Stunner as a potential solution to future U.S. military requirements. In 2016 Raytheon announced that it had been authorised to bid SkyCeptor, a Stunner derivative, as part of its Patriot bid for the Polish government's medium-range air defence Wisła program. In March 2017 it was announced that the Raytheon bid had been successful, with Poland to acquire Patriot system in the first stage of the program. It was further announced that Poland would acquire only a small number of Patriot PAC-3 MSE missiles, with the majority of missiles deployed with the system being SkyCeptors. Ultimately, Poland did not acquire the SkyCeptor missiles in the second stage of the Wisła program in May 2022, replacing them with the construction of a new layer of short-range air defence under the separate Narew program, which will be integrated with Patriot batteries with an advanced IBCS battle command system. As part of the Narew program, Poland plans to acquire CAMM and CAMM-ER missiles. Polish government concluded an agreement with the British government opening the way for their production in the country which ends the discussion of possible acquisition of SkyCeptors. Electromecanica Ploiesti, Romania, will launch a three-year investment program in 2023 to build SkyCeptor missile interceptors with U.S. Raytheon. The first missiles are expected in 2026.


References


External links


Stunner // Terminal Missile Defense Interceptor
Rafael Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California * Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Israeli manufacturer of weapons and military technology * Hurricane Rafael, a 2012 hurricane Fiction * ''R ...

Information About the David's Sling System From the Raytheon Website
* .
New Air Defense System: David's Sling
Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
channel, 20 March 2017 {{Rafael Advanced Defense Systems 21st-century surface-to-air missiles Emergency management in Israel Missile defense Surface-to-air missiles of Israel Weapons and ammunition introduced in 2017 Rafael Advanced Defense Systems