An Israeli defense delegation led by Ministry of Defense Director General Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram departed Monday to attend a ceremony marking the operational capability handover of the Arrow 3 missile-defense system to the German Air Force.
The event represents the first operational delivery under the landmark defense agreement signed more than two years ago. At an estimated value of $3.5 billion, the deal is the largest of its kind in Israel’s history.
Joining Baram are Brig. Gen. (res.) Daniel Gold, head of the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Defense Research & Development (DDR&D); Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) CEO Boaz Levy; Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) Director Moshe Patel; and additional senior officials.
Arrow 3 is the upper-tier layer of Israel’s missile-defense program, designed to intercept ballistic missiles during the exoatmospheric portion of their trajectory, at altitudes above 100 kilometers (62 miles). It became operational in Israel on Jan. 18, 2017.
On Sept. 28, 2023, then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant signed the agreement in Berlin to provide Israel’s Arrow 3 with the first missile battery, including radar, launch and interception management systems, to be supplied to the Germans by the fourth quarter of 2025.
In June, German lawmakers approved advanced payments of up to €560 million ($606 million) for the system.
Germany is the first foreign purchaser of the system.
Then-German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made an initial request for the system in a meeting with then-Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in March 2022, with Israel working behind the scenes to persuade Washington to allow the sale.
The system—among the most advanced of its kind—was jointly developed by the Israeli Missile Defense Organization and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, and therefore required American approval to sell to a third party.
The U.S. gave the green light on Aug. 17, 2023.
