Last update - 00:00 23/03/2008
Defense Min. says unimpressed by anti-missile system
By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent
The defense establishment on Saturday said it was not impressed by the performance of the Nautilus anti-missile system, evaluated last week in New Mexico by Pinhas Buchris, director general at the Defense Ministry.
Buchris traveled to inspect the system following claims by the manufacturer, Northrop-Grumman, that the development of the system has yielded an operational battery, Sky Guard, which can meet the threat posed by Qassam and Katyusha rockets.
"We were told that it would take several months to prepare the system for an interception," a source in the Defense Ministry said. "The visit of the director general was scheduled three months ago. We were told that the system was improved in recent years, and we wanted to see it. We did not see a significant improvement in its abilities."
The defense establishment had evaluated the Nautilus, which uses lasers to destroy incoming rockets, as a potential defense against Qassam rockets, but in the end Defense Minister Ehud Barak selected Iron Dome, which is under development by Rafael.
But in recent months there has been growing pressure by persons affiliated with Northrop-Grumman for a reevaluation of the interception system.
"We wanted to reexamine the effectiveness of the system and we asked for a timetable for the production of a mobile version of Nautilus [Sky Guard] and we wanted cost estimates. We did not receive these," a defense source said.
Colonel (res.) Yossi Arazi, who is connected with Northrop-Grumman, said that a demonstration of a rocket interception had not been planned. "This is a system that has not been in operation for four years, and months are necessary in order to prepare it for an interception," he said.
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