Israel says it will field Iron Beam air-defense lasers in a year

JERUSALEM — Iron Beam systems will be integrated into the network of Israeli air defense weapons within a year, the Israeli Ministry of Defense said on Monday.

The announcement comes after the government signed an armament agreement with contractors Rafael and Elbit to accelerate the development of the Iron Beam directed-energy weapon, according to the MOD director general, retired Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir.

Iron Beam will operate as part of the Israeli air defense system alongside Iron Dome batteries, said military-research chief Daniel Gold. “The combination between laser interception and missile interception will further tighten the defense envelope against rockets, missiles, drones, cruise missiles and other threats,” he said.

Rafael is the main developer of the Iron Beam system, and Elbit supplies the laser cannon for it. The deal is for NIS 2 billion ($536 million), with Rafael’s share estimated at about 60% and Elbit’s share at 40%.

Iron Beam is a laser air defense system that operates against a variety of air threats such as rockets, mortar bombs, unmanned aerial vehicles, cruise missiles. It can be programmed to follow low-flying targets, zapping them with just enough energy to disable them.

It was presented for the first time in February 2014 at the Singapore Air Show, and after it proved its capabilities in a series of tests in southern Israel about 3 years ago it entered into operational development and adaptation to the battlefield.

The price of a Tamir missile, which is the interceptor launched by Iron Dome, is about $100,000, while the cost of interception using a laser shield is the price of the electricity used to launch it. Laser interception is meant to revolutionize the economy of air defense, which so far has favored attackers because missiles and drones are cheaper to deploy than to shoot down.

The Israeli air defense has been coping with drone threats from Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen, along with the tens of thousands of missiles that have been fired at the country since the outbreak of the war against Hamas and associated terror groups.

On the other hand, the laser system is more limited than Iron Dome in its ability to deal with large rocket barrages, along with limitations on days of impaired visibility due to clouds, rain or sandstorms.

Tzally Greenberg is the Israel correspondent for Defense News. He has experience reporting on economic affairs as well as defense and cyber companies.