The US Defence Ministry Pentagon has confirmed it is sending a high-altitude anti-missile system THAAD operated by US troops to Israel.
- THAAD stands for Terminal High-Altitude Area Defence, and the battery is used to intercept and destroy enemy missiles.
- The Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (Thaad) battery will bolster Israeli air defences after Iran’s missile attack on the country.
- The Thaad system is highly effective against ballistic missiles, according to manufacturer Lockheed Martin.
- The system counts six truck-mounted launchers, with eight interceptors on each launcher. It costs about $1bn a battery and requires a crew of about 100 to operate it.
- THAAD provides a “rapidly deployable capability against short-range (up to 1,000 km), medium-range (1,000–3,000 km), and limited intermediate-range (3,000–5,000 km) ballistic missile threats inside or outside the atmosphere during their final (terminal) phase of flight.
- Employing “hit-to-kill” technology to destroy threat missiles, the THAAD can defend a larger area than the older Patriot Air and Missile Defense System.
- THAAD is not only very expensive to use, it requires trained US personnel to operate it.
