Israel Completes Major David’s Sling Upgrade in Advanced Trial Series

In line with rising tensions with Iran, the Defense Ministry announced today that Israel has successfully completed a complex series of advanced trials of the David’s Sling air defense system. 

The successful trials reinforce David’s Sling’s role as the central layer in Israel’s multi-layered air defense array, designed to intercept rockets, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles. Israeli officials described the series as a significant technological and operational step forward in preparing the system for evolving regional threats.

The trials were conducted by the Homa Directorate within the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Defense Research and Development, together with the U.S. Missile Defense Agency and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.

According to the Defense Ministry, the trial series was built on operational lessons from the war and included a wide range of challenging scenarios aligned with existing and developing threats. The system, which demonstrated high performance and successful interceptions during the war, underwent testing of new capabilities aimed at upgrading its ability to address multiple and diverse threats simultaneously.

Moshe Patel, head of the Homa Directorate at the Defense Ministry, said: “During the war, and particularly in Operation ‘Am Kelavi,’ the Homa Directorate carried out real-time changes and adjustments that dramatically improved the capabilities of the Air Force’s air defense systems, especially David’s Sling. As part of our planned development programs, we conducted an extensive series of trials that examined future capabilities and the ability to confront multiple and diverse threats. The series concluded with full success and enables a significant upgrade to the State of Israel’s air defense array.”

David’s Sling operates as the middle tier of Israel’s defense architecture, alongside the Arrow system, Iron Dome, and the recently delivered “Or Eitan” high-powered laser system provided to the Israeli Air Force. The Defense Ministry leads the system’s development through the Homa Directorate in cooperation with Israel’s defense industries and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency. Rafael serves as the primary developer of David’s Sling, while Israel Aerospace Industries’ Elta division developed the MMR radar and Elbit Systems developed the command-and-control system.

Rafael CEO Yoav Turgeman said: “In light of the evolving threats, Rafael is proud to successfully conclude the advanced trial series of the David’s Sling system, which included the use of new capabilities across a wide range of challenging scenarios. The system is constantly undergoing upgrades and adaptations, and this latest series once again proves that David’s Sling is among the best air defense systems in the world. I would like to thank Rafael’s employees for their ongoing work for the security of the state, and our partners in the Homa Directorate, the MDA, and the Air Force for their role in this success.”