If you have heard in recent months about iron dome experiments in the USA, it was because the USA is developing a new short-medium term GNA system under the name IFPC. As part of that system, a launcher is being developed and interceptors are expected to be procured. The companies that will win the production of the launcher and the interceptor are expected to receive huge orders from the US Department of Defense in the coming years. The maximum scope of the program is the purchase of 400 launchers, just for the US Army. It can be assumed that such a quantity of launchers will lead to the purchase of tens of thousands of interceptors.
So that’s it, USA Wants to develop a system to intercept aircraft at short distances, a mobile one that will be adjacent to the manipulator force. As a system, it will fill the gap between short-range tactical air defense and long-range ballistic missile defense such as the PAC-3 and THAAD. That is, short – medium term.
For the system, a mobile launcher is being developed in the USA, under the program Indirect Fire Protection Capability Inc 2 Launcher or simply IFPC Inc 2. The companies Dynetics and Raytheon hold a contract for the supply of 16 Enduring Shield launchers and about 60 more AIM-9X Blk II interceptors until the end Year 23, with four of them to be delivered by the end of 2022. The full contract, if implemented, could cover up to 400 launchers.
The first priority in the program focuses on counter UAS interception and defense against cruise missiles. An Enduring Shield launcher and an AIM-9X Blk 2 missile should do this job.
A second priority relates to the missile interception mission, with an interceptor to be competitively procured in the coming years. Potential candidates: Lockheed Martin’s Miniature Hit-To-Kill Interceptor, Raytheon’s AI3 and Rafael’s TAMIR. I will mention that Rafael and Lockheed Martin signed a cooperation agreement several years ago. However, the TAMIR interceptor is manufactured in the USA by the Raytheon company.
Talks about integrating the Iron Dome system into the project were expected as early as 2020. In 2021, the US Army deployed the Iron Dome in Guam and conducted a successful simulation to test the system. Part of the thinking was that the system could protect against cruise missiles, until a permanent solution was found. Last August, the US conducted another successful test of the system. Also as part of the IFPC Inc 2 development process.
How much does the pleasure cost? Well, as mentioned, the official procurement process for the system’s future interceptor has not yet started, but an AIM-9X Blk II missile costs the American government about 400,000 dollars per unit with all the modules required for an air-to-air missile. In an interceptor configuration, they will probably be able to refine the missile’s content and make it cheaper. For comparison, according to estimates, the cost of a Rafael TAMIR interceptor is much cheaper and amounts to several tens of thousands of dollars per unit for the IDF.
In conclusion, it is worth following the development of the competition in this project between the interceptor manufacturers. For Rafael, this is a huge sales potential for the American market, and also for the countries that will buy this system through the American foreign aid programs.