Gary Fitleberg, May 7, 2004

A laser beam under joint Israeli-U.S. development destroyed a long-Katyusha range rocket for the first time in a test in the skies over the American Southwest, Reuters reported.

"This is a significant step forward," a Defense Ministry spokesman said of the test on May 4 of the "Nautilus" Mobile Tactical High Energy Laser (MTHEL) held at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.

The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and Israel announced it would flight-test the jointly developed Arrow missile defense system for the first time in the United States this summer.

Defense Department officials told Defense Daily last week, "The tests are ... meant to demonstrate the system's performance in scenarios that cannot be provided in Israel, due to range limitations." The Arrow interceptor has displayed compatibility with the United States' own missile defense system currently under development, and protects Israel and American forces in the region from short- and medium range missiles

The system has so far successfully destroyed 28 Katyusha rockets in mid-air, as well as five artillery mortars.

Major General (Res.) Shmuel Keren, Director of Development of Weapons Systems and Infrastructure at the Defense Ministry, said that the system is able to intercept a variety of aerial targets such as long-range rockets and cruise missiles, to which there is currently no solution.

"The [Nautilus] project has the potential to fill an important operational need for Israel," said Shmuel Keren, the Israeli military's director of weapons systems and infrastructure development.

Several Israeli companies, among them Rafael and Elbit, are sub-contractors in the project.

Gary Fitleberg is a Political Analyst specializing in International Relations with emphasis on Middle East affairs.

Copyright © 2004 Gary Fitleberg