Israel passes on U.S.-produced anti-rocket laser

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Source: Reuters

Israel passes on U.S.-produced anti-rocket laser
24 Mar 2008 13:25:59 GMT
Source: Reuters
JERUSALEM, March 24 (Reuters) - Israel has decided against buying a U.S.-produced anti-rocket laser for the border with the Hamas-run Gaza Strip because of the device's poor performance in field tests, a top Israeli defence official said on Monday.

Israeli state arms firm Rafael is developing Iron Dome, which is designed to shoot down Palestinian rockets from Gaza with miniature missiles, but that system is not expected to be operational before 2010.

Seeking a stop-gap countermeasure, Defence Ministry director-general Pinchas Buchris flew to the United States last week to re-evaluate Nautilus, an Israeli-U.S. invention that uses a laser to blow up rockets and mortar bombs mid-flight. Israeli experts had previously written off Nautilus -- which is being upgraded under a new name, Skyguard -- as unreliable, and Israel's Army Radio said Buchris had found little improvement.

Read more: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L24435989.htm

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