Pentagon seeks $220m for Israel’s Iron Dome
Bloomberg, Apr 17 20-13
The Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency for the first time in its regular annual budget contains funds to buy additional Iron Dome missile defense systems for Israel, according to documents and an agency spokesman. The budget requests $220m for missile batteries in FY2014, which begins Oct 1, and an additional $175.9m in FY2015, according to budget documents the Missile Defense Agency posted online last week. The money, if approved during the annual defense budget process, would be on top of $486m the White House and Congress have requested or added for the system in recent years after formal budgets were submitted. This includes $211m added in the defense appropriations bill for this year, which Obama signed into law last month. Missile Defense Agency spokesman Richard Lehner said in an e- mail:
The $220m request for FY2014 is new money, and it is the first time funding specifically for Iron Dome procurement has been requested in our budget submission. House and Senate defense committees last year signaled they wanted to approve spending as much as $680m on Iron Dome through 2015. The FY2014 request is a smaller piece of the larger amount and supports the various production lines and schedules to meet the desired goals.
USrael in Oct 2012 conducted their biggest joint air and missile defense exercise. Austere Challenge 12 involved as many as 3,500 US personnel along with 1,000 Israeli personnel. Sec Def Hagel said Tuesday at a US House hearing that he plans to visit Israel within “a few days.” He added (just for good measure – RB):
Our interests are very clear and common. I think the Israelis know that.
USraeli officials last year said the Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted about 400 rockets fired at Israel, or about 85% of those targeted by its radar and battle-management system as heading toward populated areas during an eight-day period of rocket firings from the Gaza strip. Iron Dome, made in Israel by Rafael, is designed to intercept and destroy rockets capable of flying as far as 70 km. Israel has fielded its first five batteries of launchers and interceptors costing as much as $90k apiece, according to the Congressional Research Service. Then-Israeli Min Def Barak last year praised the US for the prior investments that allowed Israel’s military to more quickly deploy the initial batteries in southern Israel. In addition to the new Iron Dome funding, the Missile Defense Agency requested $95.7m to bankroll three other systems under the general category of Israeli Cooperative Programs, about $4m less than this year’s request. The Missile Defense Agency projects it will request $510m for these three systems through 2018. The category includes money for improvements to the existing Arrow program and new Arrow 3, intended to intercept long- and medium-range ballistic missiles such as those possessed by Iran, and a shorter range new system called David’s Sling, designed to intercept rockets fired by Hamas and Hezbollah. The FY2014 request includes money for Arrow 3 to continue development testing, conduct a second intercept flight and prepare the weapon to start initial production, according to agency documents. Boeing and Israel Aerospace are developing the Arrow 3 interceptor. Enhancements to the existing Arrow program funded in the FY2014 request include integrating a long-range detection suite of sensors designed to detect the flight of unmanned aerial drones into Israeli territory, according to the budget documents. The Arrow Weapon Systems Improvement also funds the integration of data links that allow Israeli missile defense units to integrate with US weapons in the region.
Hagel to travel to Israel
AP, Apr 16 2013
Sec Def Hagel says he will be traveling to Israel in a few days, his first trip to the monstrous parasite Mideast ally since he took over at the Pentagon. Hagel mentioned the trip during congressional testimony on Tuesday as critturs pressed him on whether the US would support Israel if it launches a strike against Iran. Hagel told a House panel that such a policy decision would be made by Obama. During his contentious confirmation hearing, Hagel faced tough questions on whether he was sufficiently supportive of Israel. He insisted that he was, despite previous statements and votes while he served in the Senate.
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