Israel moves to ‘significantly accelerate’ acquisition of more Arrow interceptors

JERUSALEM — Israel is racing to replenish its supply of Arrow missile interceptors, which are used in the upper-most part of the nation’s famed multi-layered air defense system.

“The Director General of the Israel Ministry of Defense (IMOD), Maj. Gen. (Res.) Amir Baram, signed a production contract to significantly accelerate the serial production of Arrow interceptors at IAI (Israel Aerospace Industries),” the Israeli Ministry of Defense said in a statement Thursday. The decision was announced as Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz is visiting Washington, along with Baram and other key Israeli defense officials.

The Arrow air defense system was used heavily in the recent 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran, defending the nation from Iranian counter-attacks after Israeli strikes in what Jerusalem called Operation Rising Lion. Before that, two versions of the system, Arrow 2 and Arrow 3, both saw their first operational successes in the conflict that followed Hamas’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, defending against Houthi missile attacks launched from Yemen and two barrages of missile and drone attacks from Iran.

“The system provides exo-atmospheric and endo-atmospheric interception capabilities against ballistic missile threats, protecting the State of Israel from strategic long-range threats. The Arrow system integrates cutting-edge technologies and is considered one of the world’s most advanced air and missile defense systems,” the ministry noted. The lower two layers of Israel’s air defense network are David’s Sling and Iron Dome.

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The ministry’s July 17 statement did not note the value of the new contract to accelerate acquisition of the interceptors, but the decision comes as Israel also announced it would add an additional $12.5 billion to its defense budget for 2025-2026. The accelerated acquisition “reflects the system’s unprecedented success during the war,” IAI President and CEO Boaz Levy said.

After Israel launched attacks on Iran on June 13, 2024, Iran launched approximately 550 ballistic missiles at Israel over the next 12 days. Israel says it intercepted around 86 percent of the missile threats. The medium-range David’s Sling interceptor was also used, alongside the US THAAD system and other defenses in these interceptions.

“Accelerating the production rate of the Arrow and other critical systems is a central component of the Ministry’s strategy to expand production capabilities and improve operational readiness for the continuation of the war and future campaigns,” Baram noted in the ministry’s statement.

The head of the Directorate of Defense Research and Development (DDR&D) at the Israel Ministry of Defense, Daniel Gold, said that accelerating the interceptor production is also part of the wider vision of Israel’s defense industries. “We aim to massively increase the supply of high-quality defensive and offensive military equipment to the IDF.”

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The Arrow deal is part of a number of other Israeli deals to acquire more defense systems. For instance, on Wednesday the Israeli Ministry of Defense also said it would acquire $20 million-worth of advanced machine guns in 7.62 mm caliber from the Negev 7 and UX series that are made by with Israel Weapon Industries.

“We must maintain our qualitative and quantitative advantage over our enemies,” Gold added.

IAI is also supplying the Arrow 3 to Germany, based on a 2023 deal, but has committed to keeping the IDF stocked.

IAI’s Levy noted that “since the war began, we have operated at full capacity to meet Israel’s security needs across air, sea, land, and space, while continuously developing new systems for future challenges, including the Arrow 4 system.”

Arrow 4 is expected to be deployed soon by Israel, according to recent reports.