US Army Refuses to Purchase Israeli Anti-Missile Iron Dome System

Israeli media outlets mentioned that the US Army has decided not to purchase the Israeli anti-missile  Iron Dome.

The “Jerusalem Post”, an English-spoken Israeli daily newspaper, indicated lately on Wednesday, that the US Army refused to contract the Israeli defensive system after decisive tests to the Israeli system that was developed by Rafael company for advanced defensive systems.

The US defensive industries compared last month in New Mexico State the Israeli system to Dynetics an American one that produced by US Leidos Company.

US authorities preferred the local system to the Israeli one.

The post made clear that the  Dynetics which is called also the Enduring Shield” is able to detect missiles and other projectiles at 360 degrees. It can also fire at mutable targets simultaneously.

The American system is facile to use and can be assimilated into the air-defense and rocket systems of the US Army.

The Israeli newspaper quoted both the Israeli Ministry of Defense and Rafael Company as saying they declined to comment on the US decision but it will be a major lapse to the Israeli government and defensive industries.

The average cost of the “Iron Dome” New Israeli Shekel (NIS) is 27 million (about $ 7,12 million).

Rafael achieved record sales last year as it contracted to export missile systems worth $ 4,2 billion.

The Times of Israel said that the  American troops conducted their first test of the Iron Dome missile defense system in the United States earlier this summer, Israel’s Defense Ministry said Monday.

This was the first live-fire trial, in which US soldiers shot down targets, including drones, with the Iron Dome, according to the ministry. Originally designed to intercept rockets, the Iron Dome has since been upgraded and improved to allow it to also shoot down mortar shells, unmanned aerial vehicles, and cruise missiles.

Under a 2019 agreement, Israel sold two Iron Dome batteries to the United States, the first being delivered in late 2020 and the second in January 2021. Since then, the US Army has been working to integrate the system into its air defense array.