The US Army is training soldiers on how to operate Rafael’s Iron Dome, with the goal of having the first battery ready to deploy by September and the second by about December, the service told Janes .
Israel delivered the first air-defence battery to the army in September 2020 and the weapon is now at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, Donald Herrick, a spokesman for the Air and Missile Defense Cross Functional Team, wrote in a 6 January email. The army then received the second battery in early January and Herrick said this one should arrive at the missile range by early March.
As for the manning part of the equation, the service activated two air defence artillery batteries at Fort Bliss, Texas, in November 2020.
“These units will test and evaluate the Iron Dome system and explore its potential for interoperability into the army's existing air and missile defence architecture,” Herrick added.
More specifically, from January through July the soldiers will participate in a new equipment fielding and training programme, which will include a live-fire engagement in June where the service will test out Iron Dome’s ability to down a surrogate cruise missile.
If all goes as planned, the army could have the first battery ready to deploy in September and the second in December, Herrick said. It is anticipated that each battery will require between 50 and 75 personnel to operate.
The US Army received its second Iron Dome battery in early January. (Israel Ministry of Defense Spokesperson’s Office)
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