Posted on 05/10/2008 2:01:31 PM PDT by Dawnsblood
The system Bush may offer is known as a forward-based X-band radar. Transportable by air, it uses high-powered pulsed beams for extremely high-resolution tracking of objects in space such as a missile that could be tipped with a chemical, germ or nuclear warhead.
Built by Raytheon Co, the system has been described by U.S. officials as capable of tracking an object the size of a baseball from about 2,900 miles (4,700 km) away.
It would let Israel's Arrow missile defences engage a Shahab-3 ballistic missile about halfway through what would be its 11-minute flight to Israel from Iran, or six times sooner than Israel's "Green Pine" radar is currently capable of doing, Kirk said in a telephone interview on Friday.
Kirk is a commander in the U.S. Naval Reserves who confers with Israeli officials on missile defence. He serves one weekend a month as deputy director of intelligence in the Pentagon's National Military Command Centre.
With an X-Band system at work, he said, a missile intercept theoretically would take place over Iran or a neighbouring state and not over Israel.
(Excerpt) Read more at swissinfo.org ...
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
Will that offset the incompetence of the command and control and leadership that made the IDF impotent in Lebanon last go round?
And then sold to anyone with a pocket full of sheckels.
OOOHHHHH
Beware, the Jewish folk don’t like anyone saying anything bad about the Israeli military.
That was my first thought as well. As much as I would like to see Israel with a system capable of defeating Iranian IRBMs, it seems that everything we sell them gets passed to the Chinese sooner or later.
Not that we are really great at keeping our secrets ourselves. Clinton and Ron Brown practically sold the Pentagon to the Chinese, and what they didn’t sell, the ChiComs managed to steal anyhow.
Then, of course, there was the EP3 which that schmuck of a Nav Pilot gave them on a silver platter back in 2001. Fat city! They’re probably still digesting that windfall.
Will that offset the incompetence of the command and control and leadership that made the IDF impotent in Lebanon last go round?
How would they integrate the system? They need a surface search radar to initially detect before acquiring the tgt with the K band system. ( I assume the K band is fire control.) Better to strike, before or during launch. IMHO.
Don’t confuse political stupidity and crony generals with military systems.
Sorry, I was talking to a Air Force commander about Israeli pilots and Air Force. He said other than their mothers, it would be over in minutes. Their tactics are very parochial. He said they didn’t even have a clue how small town they were. There is nothing the Israelis have, that we haven’t had for ten years, ten times more, deployed and trained.
It’s good they face Arabs.
And will be in China before the decade is out.
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