Iron Beam
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Iron Beam ( he, קֶרֶן בַּרְזֶל, '), officially מגן אור, ', "Light Shield", is a
directed-energy weapon A directed-energy weapon (DEW) is a ranged weapon that damages its target with highly focused energy without a solid projectile, including lasers, microwaves, particle beams, and sound beams. Potential applications of this technology include w ...
air defense system Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes Surface-to-air m ...
which was unveiled at the
Singapore Airshow The Singapore Airshow is a biennial aerospace event held in Singapore, debuted in 2008. It hosts high-level government and military delegations, as well as senior corporate executives around the world, while serving as a global event for leadin ...
on February 11, 2014 by 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 ...
. The system is designed to destroy short-range rockets, artillery, and mortar bombs; it has a range of up to , too close for 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 to intercept projectiles effectively. In addition, the system could also intercept
unmanned aerial vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controller ...
s (UAVs).RAFAEL Develops a New High Energy Laser Weapon , Defense Update:
/ref> Iron Beam will constitute the fifth element of Israel's integrated air defense system, in addition to
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 ...
,
David's Sling 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 military system being jointly developed by the Israeli defense contractor Ra ...
, Barak 8 and
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- ...
.


Characteristics

Iron Beam uses a fiber laser to destroy an airborne target within 4–5 seconds of firing at a range of 20 km. Whether acting as a stand-alone system or with external cueing as part of an air-defense system, a threat is detected by a surveillance system and tracked by vehicle platforms in order to engage. The main benefits of using a
directed energy weapon A directed-energy weapon (DEW) is a ranged weapon that damages its target with highly focused energy without a solid projectile, including lasers, microwaves, particle beams, and sound beams. Potential applications of this technology include ...
over conventional missile interceptors are lower costs per shot, unlimited number of firings, lower operational costs, and less manpower. There is also no interceptor debris to fall on the area protected. The cost of each interception is negligible, unlike expensive missile interceptors—around
US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
2,000 per shot to cover all costs, against $100,000 to $150,000 per interceptor firing. In 2016 laser power levels were reported to be "tens of kilowatts".ALLAN KATZ: 'Iron Beam' enhances U.S., allies' security
– nwitimes.com, 10 May 2016
While official information is not available, a 2020 report said that Iron Beam was thought to have a maximum effective range of up to 7 km, and could destroy missiles, UAVs (drones), and mortar shells around four seconds after the twin high-energy fiber-optic lasers make contact with their target. Iron Beam had been funded mainly by the
Israeli Ministry of Defense The Ministry of Defense ( he, מִשְׂרַד הַבִּטָּחוֹן, Misrad HaBitahon, Ministry of Security, acronym: he, משהב"ט) of the government of Israel, is the governmental department responsible for defending the State of Isra ...
(MoD), with Rafael pursuing increasing the range of the system and partnering with other companies to further develop the prototype. In December 2022, Rafael and
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 ...
announced a joint effort to develop a laser defense system based on the Iron Beam project. The aim is to produce a system made up of a pair of solid-state lasers that, when combined, could boost power up to 300 kw, as well as to use more than one beam to simultaneously burn more than one target at once.


Development

The system is based on five years of research and development in solid-state lasers and is developed by Rafael, funded by the MoD, and underwritten by the United States. An Iron Beam battery is composed of an air defense radar, a command and control (C2) unit, and two HEL (High Energy Laser) systems. It was intended to be mobile and to be able to be used stand-alone, but was later rendered non-mobile to address weight and power availability concerns and integrated into Iron Dome to reduce complexity.Iron Beam, Israel’s laser air defense system, could be ready in 2-3 years
''Breaking Defense''. 4 October 2022.
It is intended for two laser guns to initially produce 100–150 kw of power. In April 2022, the Israeli Ministry of Defense and Rafael announced that in a series of experiments the system successfully shot down drones, rockets, mortar bombs, and anti-tank missiles. The military pushed for an earlier deployment, possibly due to concerns that there would not be sufficient Iron Dome projectiles to combat attacks; Prime Minister
Naftali Bennett Naftali Bennett ( he, נַפְתָּלִי בֶּנֶט, Transliterated: , ; born 25 March 1972) is an Israeli politician who served as the 13th prime minister of Israel from 13 June 2021 to 30 June 2022, and as the 3rd Alternate Prime Minist ...
said in February 2022 that Israel would deploy the system within the year. However, in October 2022 Rafael said it expects to take "two to three years" to deploy the 100+kw weapon operationally.Rafael anticipates Iron Beam laser system could deploy in two years
''
Defense News ''Defense News'' is a website and newspaper about the politics, business, and technology of national security published by Sightline Media Group. Founded in 1986, ''Defense News'' serves an audience of senior military, government, and industry de ...
''. 7 October 2022.


See also

*
Light Blade Light Blade ( he, להב אור, Lahav Or) is a laser weapon system to intercept airborne incendiary devices: incendiary balloons, incendiary kites, and drones. These were used in significant numbers in a Palestinian arson campaign launched in A ...
, a simpler Israeli air defense laser system


References


External links


"Maggen Or": Israel successfully completed interception tests with a laser-based air defense system
Israeli Ministry of Defense The Ministry of Defense ( he, מִשְׂרַד הַבִּטָּחוֹן, Misrad HaBitahon, Ministry of Security, acronym: he, משהב"ט) of the government of Israel, is the governmental department responsible for defending the State of Isra ...
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 {{Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Emergency management in Israel Military lasers Missile defense Proposed weapons of Israel Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Israeli inventions