Iron Dome Weapon System production facility under development in U.S.
NewsAugust 04, 2020
WALTHAM, Mass. Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, and RAFAEL Advanced Defense Systems Ltd., an Israeli-based defense technology company, have signed a joint venture to establish an Iron Dome Weapon System production facility in the United States.
The new partnership, called Raytheon RAFAEL Area Protection Systems, anticipates finalizing a site location before the end of the year. According to company officials, this will be the first Iron Dome all-up-round facility outside of Israel.
The new facility will produce both the Iron Dome Weapon System, which consists of the Tamir interceptor and launcher, and the SkyHunter® missile, a U.S. derivative of Tamir. Both Tamir and SkyHunter intercept incoming cruise missiles, unmanned aerial systems and short-range targets such as rockets, artillery, mortars and other aerial threats.
Raytheon Missiles & Defense and RAFAEL have teamed for over a decade on Iron Dome, a system with more than 2,500 operational intercepts and a success rate exceeding 90 percent, according to the companies.
