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US Army to Purchase Iron Dome


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https://defence-blog.com/army/u-s-army-will-acquire-israels-iron-dome-air-defense-systems.html

Great idea, given the US currently has next to nothing for medium range Air Defense systems. Hopefully they won't stop at only two batteries, this system should be deployed with every division . 

Also kind makes sense that we would benefit from this, given that the US pretty much paid for it's development. 

Nice to see that the Army isn't being a slave to the "not invented here" syndrome. First Trophy, now Iron Dome.  USAF might want to take a look at some IDF kit as well, they seem to have developed some pretty innovative air to air missiles, not to mention UAV's and EW systems. 

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34 minutes ago, habu2 said:

I don't see where the US has a medium range air defense threat here that compares to the threat situation in Israel.....

 

err.. I always thought the military should be prepared for the next war, not the current one?   All you need to do is look at a long list of potential adversaries and it should be pretty apparent that just possibly, the next war won't be fought against cavemen with suicide vests and RPG's.  We actually might have to fight someone who has aircraft, drones, accurate long range artillery and the smarts to use these systems effectively.   I'm guessing the US Army put a bit of thought into this before they wrote a check to the Israelis for a few hundred million dollars.   

 

If you really don't think there is a threat, you could ask the Ukrainians what they think about the usefulness of a system that could intercept enemy aircraft, UAV's, incoming rockets, mortars, long range artillery, etc.  You could also ask the Ukrainians how badly they were bloodied by an adversary who knew how to properly employ those weapons a few years ago. 

 

Right now we have 30-year old Stingers (which is primarily a daylight / clear-weather system) and the next level up are massive Patriot / THAAD batteries.   None of those has the ability to hit smaller drones and incoming ordinance and even if those heavy systems did, do those targets warrant a multi-million dollar missile?  From my uneducated perspective, Iron Dome looks like a good (and badly needed) piece of kit. 

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I have to agree with 11bee on this one, the US Army needs to go back to a layered ADA set-up, and the US Army is testing the AIAMD (Army Integrated Air and Missile Defense System), which would combine several different ADA systems into one integrated system. The Iron Dome would be the short-to-med range portion of it, however, the US Army has been testing what is known as the IFPC Inc 2-I (Integrated Fire Protection Capability Increment 2-Intercept) using a launcher about the size of a deuce and a half truck, the Sentinel radar system, and either the AIM-9X or Longbow Hellfire missile (or both). I would venture to guess why the Army is asking to purchase Iron Dome is because the IFPC is still in testing, meanwhile the US Army has a desperate need for something that can defend ground troops against artillery shells, rockets, mortars and small UAVs, something that Stingers nor Patriots are equipped to handle.

When I joined the US Army in 1990 (and assigned to a Patriot battalion in 1992-1994) this is what the Army had for ADA systems...

(short range)

M2 machine gun.....(yeah, the good ole' Ma Deuce.....I love shooting that thing....cleaning, not so much)

M-163 Vulcan (either mounted on an M113, or trailer towed)

MIM-72 Chaparral (but it was on it's way out replaced by....)

MIM-1097 Avenger 

 

(medium range)

MIM-23 Hawk

 

(long range)

MIM-104 Patriot

 

What the US Army has now for ADA systems now.....

(short range)

M2 machine gun....(still shooting strong)

MIM-1097 Avenger (which some systems may be integrated with the Stryker, and possible re-introduced on the M2 Bradley)

 

(med to long range)

MIM-104 Patriot

THAAD

 

I think it's time to add more systems.....

 

Edited by Johnopfor
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