IAI and Boeing drive to active Arrow-3

Israel Aerospace Industries and the Boeing Co. are driving to complete development of Israel's Arrow-3 anti-ballistic missile interceptor amid the Persian Gulf confrontation between Iran and the West.

If that standoff, over Iran's contentious nuclear program, does erupt into open war in the Middle East that could result in Iranian Shehab-3 missiles streaking toward the Jewish state.

The Arrow-3 will be Israel's first line of defense against ballistic missiles when it becomes operational. It's slightly smaller than the Arrow-2, currently in service with the Israeli air force, but much more powerful and accurate and is intended to specifically to counter an Iranian nuclear threat.

Israel is small, the size of New Jersey, and thus could be effectively knocked out by one well-placed nuclear strike in its central sector around Tel Aviv, the country's commercial and industrial core.

"Israel's too small to absorb a nuclear strike," a senior defense official observed. "The Arrow-3 will minimize the chance of enemy missiles penetrating our defense shields."

The U.S. Aviation Week magazine said the Arrow-3 "will be a critical strategic asset against Iranian ballistic missiles."