U.S. Military Sending Advanced Missile Defense System, Troops To Israel

The U.S. Military is sending an advanced anti-missile system to Israel along with a rare deployment of U.S. soldiers inside Israel who are needed to operate the systems.

The Department of Defense announced on Sunday the deployment of a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery after Iran fired hundreds of missiles at Israel in April and October

“The THAAD Battery will augment Israel’s integrated air defense system,” the Pentagon said in a statement. “This action underscores the United States’ ironclad commitment to the defense of Israel, and to defend Americans in Israel, from any further ballistic missile attacks by Iran.”

The news comes as Israel prepares to retaliate against Iran over their latest attack, firing approximately 180 ballistic missiles at Israel at the start of the month.

After the attack in April, Israel responded with a very limited strike that was intended to send a message rather than cause serious damage.

This time it is widely expected, based on remarks from Israeli officials and assessments from analysts, that Israel is going to respond with significantly greater force.

The THAAD system uses “hit-to-kill” technology to destroy incoming missiles and is capable of engaging targets well over 100 miles away.

In the U.S. arsenal, the THAAD “covers the [U.S. ballistic missile defense] middle tier and defends a larger area than the Patriot Air and Missile Defense System,” according to congressional research documents. “It complements the Patriot, the Navy’s AEGIS Missile Defense System, and the Ground-based Midcourse Defense System.”

A THAAD battery typically consists of “95 soldiers, six truck mounted launchers, 48 interceptors (eight per launcher), one Army/Navy Transportable Radar Surveillance and Control Mode 2 (AN/TPY-2) radar, and a Tactical Fire Control/Communications component.”

The system, developed by Lockheed Martin Corporation, was designed to shoot down short-range, medium-range, and limited intermediate-range ballistic missile threats inside or outside the atmosphere during their final (terminal) phase of flight.