Documents
Israel Israel Aerospace Industries
Arrow 3
An Israeli exo-atmospheric interceptor developed jointly with the United States to counter long-range ballistic missiles above the atmosphere, including in space. It forms the top tier of Israel's multi-layer missile-defense architecture.
In service since 2017 · 2 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02
2,400
km range
100,000
m altitude
14
targets
800
km radar
💲 ≈ $2,200,000 — Approximate cost per interceptor missile, public estimate
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
Israeli export-licensed
Israeli MoD (DECA/SIBAT) licensing; active export programme.
Channel: Direct commercial / G2G
Fielded & proven
Limited · 2 operators
In service since 2017. Status: active.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$5.5M – $7.7M
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost — operating & support dominate over ~25 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price.
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.
- 2,400 km Top 3% of air-defense systems
- Engagement altitude
Maximum target altitude the system can reach.
- 100,000 m Top 6% 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 3 exo-atmospheric interceptor
- Warhead type
Blast-fragmentation, shaped charge (HEAT), penetrator, thermobaric or nuclear-capable.
- Hit-to-kill kinetic
- Guidance
How the weapon finds its target: inertial, GPS/GLONASS, active/semi-active radar, infrared, laser, TV, wire.
- Hit-to-kill, 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 / Super Green Pine radar
- Radar range
Published detection range against a typical fighter-sized target. Higher sees first.
- 800 km Top 5% 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.
- Unit cost
Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper.
- $2,200,000 Stronger than 79% of air-defense systems
- Operator countries
Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.
- 2 Stronger than 43% 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
KBP Instrument Design Bureau Pantsir-S1 
Diehl Defence IRIS-T SLM Frequently asked questions
What is the engagement range of the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3? +
The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3 has a maximum engagement range of 2,400 km.
What is the main armament of the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3? +
The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3's primary weapon is the Arrow 3 exo-atmospheric interceptor.
What is the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3 used for? +
The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3 is a air defense system typically used for air defense.
How many countries operate the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3? +
The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3 is operated by 2 countries.
How much does the Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3 cost? +
The Israel Aerospace Industries Arrow 3 has an approximate unit cost of 2,200,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration — treat this as directional.
Similar systems
KBP Instrument Design Bureau
Pantsir-S1
Diehl Defence
IRIS-T SLM
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
Iron Dome
Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace