By NNN-Xinhua
Jerusalem : The Israeli defence establishment announced Wednesday that an improved “Patriot” missile-launching experiment had gained success on Tuesday in cooperation with armament company RAFAEL Advanced Defence Systems in southern Israel, Xinhua has learnt.
The experiment is part of series of improvements conducted in the missile’s operational system towards a new radar system that allows a wider cover and detection ranges, according to the statement released by the Israeli military.
In Tuesday’s experiment, which was the first of its kind in a very long period of time, a missile was launched at a target resembling an enemy plane, which it successfully intercepted, according to the statement.
A senior military source told Xinhua that based on the pleasing results of the experiment; the improved Patriot can be made operational immediately.
The Patriot, primarily an anti-ballistic defence missile, was used by Israel during the 1991 Gulf War against Iraqi surface-to-surface missiles. It was originally developed to shoot down aircraft.