The Sky is not the Limit—Presenting the Israeli Spaceport

The Sky is not the Limit—Presenting the Israeli Spaceport

For a country that independently develops multiple weapon systems, a site where launching capabilities can be tested is a necessity. For that, the IAF established the Yanat Unit. This unit is based at the Palmachim Air Force Base and specilizes in missile tests. According to Lt. Col. B., the unit’s commander, “The unit has three fundamental and unique roles: launching the Israeli defense industry’s intelligence satellites into space, carrying out all tests on aerial defense systems and tests of various types of munitions.

There is a significant difference between Palmachim and other spaceports around the world. Other spaceports are usually located near oceans or wide deserts that allow a large clearance area, as missile tests require. Lt. Col. B. commented and acknowledged that “Israel’s geography doesn’t allow that. We are located near the Mediterranean Sea which is relatively small and because of that, we developed highly accurate capabilities to enable these launches.”

The Yanat unit is made up of aeronautical engineers whose mission is to supervise the experiments and build the security protocol that allows for their fulfillment. Moreover, there are engineers and technicians of all fields that form part of the technical teams in charge of the maintenance, upgrade and operation of the different means that are required to perform the experiments. There is an internal supervision department made up of designated air controllers who undergo special training in order to serve in this position. Every experiment includes hundreds of people—soldiers in mandatory service, IDF reservists and even civilians. During the last few years, the unit has been outsourced and is now operated by RAFAEL Advanced Defense Systems Ltd.

The Highest Layer of Defense

An additional unit in the spaceport is the “Defensive Sword” unit of the Air Defense Command that operates the Arrow weapons system, headquartered at the Palmachim Air Force Base. The purpose of the Arrow system is to intercept intercontinental ballistic missiles, and the unit provides the highest layer of defense in the command—space. The enemy’s ballistic missiles are launched from distant points and necessarily leave the atmosphere, and this is the weak spot of their flight course because they are less dynamic within this area. Arrow missiles reach a certain spot in space and intercept the targets in a precise manner.

The unit trains constantly with all its personnel from mandatory and reserve service. “In our weapons system, we can create a training mode that simulates different operational scenarios. We train, tutor each other and compare our results. With that, we become as professional as possible,” says a Battery Training Officer within the unit. 1st. Lt. A., one of the unit’s Experiment and Development Officers, describes his position: “I am responsible for the contact with the defense industries. During experiments of future developments and of system updates, I’m the one who links them to us. The enemy is developing and we are developing as well. We're advanced and we will provide the best defense—at any given moment, the Arrow system can defend the State of Israel."

Although Israel is small and has to face multiple challenges, the spaceport makes it much larger than its physical borders and allows it to face any challenge in the best possible manner. Lt. Col. B. anticipates the unit’s future: “The future leads us to complex work that gets more complex with time. On the other hand, the number of constraints increases. That demands more precision, and that’s where we’re headed—toward the development of advanced engineering capabilities that will allow us to carry out complex experiments in the Mediterranean area."