Tel Aviv: Germany is closely following the accelerated development of the Israeli Arrow 4. Germany indicted that it plans to buy this version in addition to the Arrow 3, already operational.
Germany intends to procure the Israeli Arrow 4 missile defence system, with German military leadership officially announcing their intention to acquire the next-generation system.
Lieutenant General Lutz Kohlhaus, Deputy Inspector of the German Air Force, stated Germany’s intent to purchase the Arrow 4 during a defence summit in Berlin. The Arrow 4 is currently under development by Israel (in collaboration with the US) as a successor to the Arrow 2 system to cover the upper atmosphere and transition layer to space.
Germany plans to integrate Arrow 4 with its existing Arrow 3 infrastructure—utilising the same radar and launcher systems—to keep the deployment cost-effective.
Germany previously signed a record-setting multi-billion-dollar deal for the Arrow 3 system, becoming its primary foreign operator. While a firm final purchase contract for Arrow 4 depends on its ongoing development and budgeting, German leadership has officially communicated its plan to move forward with the acquisition.
The Arrow 4 will have improved agility, sophisticated seeker technology, AI-powered radar tracking, and a precision warhead designed for hypersonic glide vehicles and agile re-entry vehicles.
Arrow 4, the newest version of the Israeli interceptor, will be capable of operating at speeds more than Mach 10 in both endo and exo-atmospheric conditions.
Israel is developing this new version in order to counter emerging threats from adversaries like Iran, Russia, China, and North Korea, it supports a “shoot-look-shoot” policy for mid-course corrections and layered intercepts. The Arrow 4 will replace the Arrow 2. Additionally, Israel is already planning an Arrow 5 version.
-The writer is an Israel-based freelance journalist. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda
