Note: This appears as Chapter 2 in Missile Defense 2020: Next Steps for Defending the Homeland. Chapter 2: The Evolution of Homeland Missile Defense The homeland missile defenses fielded today and those under consideration for the future are shaped by two basic factors: the fundamentals of how missile defense works and past policy and programmatic...
Protecting the homeland is regularly identified as the top priority of U.S. missile defense efforts. This mission is dependent upon a global network of sensors and interceptors, including the Ground-based Midcourse Defense system, or GMD. The formal prioritization of homeland missile defense, however, has not always been reflected in the budget. Watch the Video: Today’s...
Note: Later information has revealed that the KN-17 refers to the Hwasong-12, not the Scud-variant as previously believed. Reports indicate that on the morning of April 5, 2017, North Korea tested a medium range ballistic missile from Sinpo, in the South Hamgyong province of North Korea. Although initial intel says that the missile was a...
On April 2, Israeli officials declared operational the newest component of Israel’s layered missile defense system, David’s Sling, at Hatzor Air Force Base near Ashdod. David’s Sling was jointly developed by Israel and the United States, and represents the layer of protection in-between the lower-tier Iron Dome, and the higher-tier Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 systems....
On March 15, the Navy conducted a successful flight test using the AN/SPY-6 (V) Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) to track a target from the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Kauai, Hawaii. According to a March 30 statement made by Naval Sea Systems Command, the flight test, referred to as ‘Vigilant Hunter,’ achieved its...
U.S. officials report that North Korea conducted another rocket engine test last Friday, either their second or third such test this month. Officials believe the tests are part of the North Korean program to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile based on North Korean statements calling earlier tests “a new birth” of its rocket industry and...
On March 28, the Saudi Royal Air Defense Force reported that it successfully intercepted four ballistic missiles fired by Houthi forces in Yemen. The missiles, intercepted by Saudi Arabia’s PAC-3 interceptors, were targeting the Saudi cities of Khamis Mushayt, which contains the King Khalid Air Base, and Abha. In a statement by the Saudi Press...
According to a Russian defense industry source, the SS-X-30 Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, frequently referred to as the “Satan II,” has been delayed. These sources told TASS news agency that “the [silo launch] testing of the Sarmat from the Plesetsk launch facility in March won’t happen… it has been shifted back to the second quarter...
Pakistan unveiled an extended range variant of its Ra’ad air launched cruise missile during its March 23 Pakistan Day Parade. The Strategic Plans Division describes the Ra’ad-II as having a 550 km range, an improvement on the 350 km Ra’ad, which was introduced in 2007. Pakistan has not announced any tests of the Ra’ad-II. Related...
A report released on March 22 by Conflict Armament Research argues that Houthi rebels in Yemen are using an Iranian designed drone variant to attack Saudi and UAE missile defense sites. Officials have indicated that the drones have been used in kamikaze style attacks on Patriot missile defense radars in an attempt to degrade those...
