Iron Beam will improve and enhance Israel’s missile defence systems. Many people are already familiar with the Iron Dome system, and this was very succesful in shooting down enemy rockets during Summer 2014. However, it has a limited range of between four and 70 kilometers and if, for whatever reason, it misses its target it could have huge repercussions and cause immense death and destruction. Iron Beam, covers this shortfall and can target anything fired up to 7 kilometers.

Israel has, for decades, led the way in military technology development and the State-owned Israel Aerospace Industries(IAI) and Rafael Defence Systems have been at the forefront of this. If Iron Beam enters service, as planned, in 2015, it will be the first system of its type in active service. It has been succesful in its testing and is reported to be able to bring down rockets “like flies.”

This defence system will complement the existing missile-defence systems in use in Israel, but it can also be deployed and used as a stand alone system if needed. While Iron Dome targets missiles fired at distance, and the Arrow missile system is designed to destroy ballistic missiles, there is no effective defence against UAVS, mortars, and (very) short range missiles. This is what Iron Beam is designed to protect against.

While the Israeli Government is keeping everyone in the dark, it is most likely going to be deployed in trouble hotspots. This means that protection for the Sheba Farms in the Golan Heights, and places such as Sderot on the border with the Hamas-run Gaza Strip will be better protected. This means that the latest piece of defence technology, five years in the making, will make an instant impact and save many, many lives. Hopefully, there will not be another war, but in the event that there is one, this technology will prove its worth.