The “Protective Dome,” a naval defense system based on the Iron Dome air-defense system, was successfully tested for the first time on the Saar-6 Corvette INS Magen, the Defense Ministry said Monday.
The Israel Navy, the Defense Ministry’s Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) in the Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure (Maf’at), Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) completed a series of interception tests with the Protective Dome against a variety of threats.
The threats tested included rockets, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs. The system will be integrated into the national system for air defense and is another piece in the multilayered system, alongside the Arrow and David’s Sling systems.
Rafael developed the Iron Dome missile-defense system. IAI’s Elta Systems developed the MF-STAR (Magen Adir) radar, and the mPrest software company developed the command and control system of the Protective Dome system.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz congratulated Maf’at, the IDF and Rafael on completing the test.
“The technology that we are developing in the multilayered defense system of the State of Israel allows us vital freedom of action vis-à-vis Iranian emissaries in the region and the means at their disposal, which are evolving,” he said. “We continue to be two steps ahead of them and will continue to act and upgrade our capabilities in defense and attack to protect Israel’s security superiority in the region, the citizens of Israel and the Israeli economy.”
Maf’at head Brig.-Gen. (ret.) Dr. Daniel Gold said: “The success of this experiment is another technological breakthrough in the field of missile defense systems, thanks to a technological vision led by Maf’at in cooperation with the IDF and the defense industries.”
IMDO head Moshe Fattal said the test was “another historic milestone” for the Iron Dome system. “Using the powerful radar, specially developed for the defense mission, the system successfully identified the threats we sent to it – rockets, UAVs and cruise missiles – and launched the Iron Dome interceptors toward them from the middle of the sea, destroying them with perfect accuracy.”
“The success of the experiment further strengthens our confidence in the system and its ability to protect large areas and strategic assets of the State of Israel,” he added.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett congratulated the defense establishment on the successful test of the Protective Dome system.
“The system will serve as an important layer in Israel’s security envelope,” he said, adding: “We continue to lead the country to the development of advanced technologies that enable us to protect our citizens, alongside vital freedom of action vis-à-vis Iran and its affiliates in the region.”
Dr. Ran Gozali, head of Rafael’s Land and Naval Division, said: “The series of experiments is in fact the end of a process of developing and adapting an Iron Dome system to the sea and meeting the requirements of the IMDO in Maf’at and the Navy in the IDF. This series of experiments demonstrated Rafael’s advanced engineering ability in the development and integration of marine systems at the highest level.”