WeaponSpecs

Documents

Air defense system Israel flagIsrael

Israel Aerospace Industries

Arrow 2

An Israeli endo-atmospheric ballistic-missile interceptor and the predecessor to Arrow 3, developed with U.S. backing to defend against short- and medium-range ballistic missiles. It uses a fragmentation warhead rather than hit-to-kill.

In service since 2000 · 1 operator countries

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02

90

km range

51,000

m altitude

14

targets

500

km radar

Pricing: Unit cost not publicly disclosed

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

Israeli export-licensed

Israeli MoD (DECA/SIBAT) licensing; active export programme.

Channel: Direct commercial / G2G

Fielded & proven

Limited · 1 operator

In service since 2000. Status: active.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

No standardised NATO calibre / datalink detected in public specs.

Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Full specifications

Performance

Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.

Max speed (Mach)

Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.

9 Mach
Top 10% of air-defense systems
Engagement range

Maximum distance at which an air-defense system can intercept targets. Higher covers more airspace.

90 km
Stronger than 59% of air-defense systems
Engagement altitude

Maximum target altitude the system can reach.

51,000 m
Top 10% of air-defense systems
Simultaneous targets

Number of targets the system can engage at once. Higher resists saturation attacks.

14
Stronger than 76% of air-defense systems

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Main armament

Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.

Arrow 2 interceptor missile
Warhead

Warhead mass. Heavier generally means larger effect radius, at the cost of range.

135 kg
Stronger than 84% of air-defense systems
Warhead type

Blast-fragmentation, shaped charge (HEAT), penetrator, thermobaric or nuclear-capable.

Fragmentation
Guidance

How the weapon finds its target: inertial, GPS/GLONASS, active/semi-active radar, infrared, laser, TV, wire.

Active radar homing, Inertial + datalink

Sensors & avionics

Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.

Radar

Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.

Green Pine radar
Radar range

Published detection range against a typical fighter-sized target. Higher sees first.

500 km
Stronger than 89% of air-defense systems
Datalink

Network connectivity: Link 16, MADL, national datalinks. Enables cooperative engagement.

Citron Tree battle management center

Program

Cost, production scale and operators.

Operator countries

Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.

1
Stronger than 19% of air-defense systems

Specifications compiled from public Israel Aerospace Industries and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.

Compare with rivals

See how it stacks up

Frequently asked questions

What is the engagement range of the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2? +

The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2 has a maximum engagement range of 90 km.

What is the main armament of the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2? +

The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2's primary weapon is the Arrow 2 interceptor missile.

What is the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2 used for? +

The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2 is a air defense system typically used for air defense.

How many countries operate the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2? +

The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2 is operated by 1 countries.

How much does the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2 cost? +

Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 2: Unit cost not publicly disclosed. Defense program costs are rarely fully public and vary by contract and configuration.

Similar systems