Israel and the U.S. conducted large-scale exercises involving air defense systems THAAD, Patriot, Aegis, Iron Dome, Hetz and David's Sling, but there is a nuance
Israel and the U.S. held a joint military exercise, in which almost all the most famous air defense systems took part. But there is one small, but very important nuance.
Here's What We Know
Patriot, Aegis, Hetz (Arrow), David's Sling, Iron Dome and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems participated in the exercise. But they took place in simulation mode at the Israeli Test Bed military laboratory under the direction of the Israel Missile Defense Organization, the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, the Israel Air Defense Command and the U.S. Air and Missile Defense Task Force.
Elbit Systems' lab simulates the use of air defense systems and collects, displays and records data in real time to facilitate detailed analysis of possible scenarios. Representatives of the Israel Missile Defense Organization note that the combination of different air defense systems significantly tells the readiness of the forces to counter air threats simultaneously on several fronts.
There is a possibility that the exercise was conducted against the backdrop of Iran's nuclear program and ballistic missile development. Officially, however, Israel and the U.S. say it is part of a previously planned exercise that has nothing to do with rising tensions in the region.
Source: The Eurasian Times, @Israel_MOD
Image: Wikipedia, Wikipedia, The Defense Post, AiirSource