Israel, US War Games Due Off California

Israel plans military exercises at a US naval facility using its Arrow interceptor missiles in a series of drills that also deploys American missile systems.

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) will ship the required hardware for the exercise to a Pacific Ocean range off the California coast later this summer, according to Reuters, quoting the head of the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency, Lieutenant General Patrick O’Reilly.

"They are having a flight test soon this summer," O’Reilly said Tuesday, referring to Joint US-Israeli effort.

The ballistic missile system is jointly funded by Tel Aviv and Washington. The Israeli marksmen recently conducted a 17th test involving the apparatus.

The American THAAD and Aegis anti-missile gear would also be re-examined during the military exercise.

The general stated that Tel Aviv picked the Pacific location since it allowed hitting targets at much farther ranges. "They (Israelis) are limited to the range of the missiles they can test in the eastern Mediterranean," he said.

O’Reilly added that the Arrows were to fly a range of more than 620 miles (1,000 km) this time.

The agency quoted a US defense official as saying this would be Israel’s third Arrow test in the United States.

Washington injects USD 2 billion worth of armaments into Tel Aviv’s military industry and is to provide the IAF with USD 30 billion in military aid over the next decade.

(Press TV)

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