Even then there'll be similar upper limits in terms of overwhelming the system, Israel has all the munitions it needs for the iron dome, you just simply can't be everywhere at once.
Probably they prefer to not intercept missiles that go to low populated areas because they are less likely to kill people and prefer to use them to intercept ones that go to the city . I don't think its a monetary issue... they get the money from US government
I mean hey you can't pick and choose every battle, right? Just reality if you're getting shot at all day every day like this. There will be some compromise
It's not that at all. If there's a single missile the system will intercept even at low population areas.
If there's a large volley of missiles (like today) and only so many can be caught, the system will prioritise high population density areas to protect.
The system can only intercept a certain number of missiles per unit time. It makes best use of that time when it needs to. The system isn't perfect but it does a very good job. It doesn't just ignore low population areas. It just prioritises larger population areas when it needs to.
Logical would be building a more impenetrable iron curtain, not sacrificing civvies. With all the money that they are getting from us its not like they cant afford it.
That was actually a really good read. I had assumed enough redundancy could fix most of the issue(s) but clearly theres things baked in i didnt account for. Much appreciated.
There is a failure rate for missile interceptors. if you fire 100, some percentage will fail. As a result, if you shoot 100 interceptors at 100 rockets some will inevitably get through or require a 2nd or 3rd missile. These decisions are occurring by real people that have to make decisions in a few minutes.
No bother at all. Still has many of the same issues, and you did have a very solid point. Just that one little error. But even with computers controlling it - that only removes the real time human error as it happens. There is still a failure rate from the interceptors etc.
They ran out of missiles a decade or so ago during one of the flare ups, so they definitely have the stockpile. They've got about 500 missiles they can fire at a time across the entire system, and once the launcher is dry it takes an hour or two to reload the launch systems.
Missiles, even a very large stock of them, take up physical space and require physical launch infrastructure. Directed energy weapons are both instantaneously delivered and don't need to be reloaded. You're limited by energy demands and heat dissipation, which are real challenges, but are less affected by the enemy always deploying [your defense + 1] missiles. Downsides are the previously mentioned energy demands and the additional technology investment needed to effectively target warheads in reentry with the precision required of lasers. It definitely can work, though. The Boeing YAL-1 demonstrated it years ago in an airborne platform. Cancelled because it could only effectively target missiles in the boost phase, meaning they'd have to have multiple ships orbiting inside the Iranian border to effectively cover a missile attack.
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u/Lawls91 Oct 01 '24 edited Oct 01 '24
Even then there'll be similar upper limits in terms of overwhelming the system, Israel has all the munitions it needs for the iron dome, you just simply can't be everywhere at once.