Father of the Arrow: How Israel's Missile Shield Met the Iranian Attack

In a special interview with the Maariv podcast, Boaz Levy, CEO of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and the father of the Arrow missile project, reflects on the moment when the defense system he spent decades developing faced its greatest operational test—the Iranian missile attack in April 2024. "It is no secret that we expected this event," Levy said. "There were several days when we checked ourselves thoroughly, wanting to know we were ready. No one knew what the scenario would be. There were various numbers and assessments, and I must say honestly and candidly—I did not believe the Iranians would dare to fire so many missiles on that day."

According to Levy, he estimated the attack would be much more limited. "I thought they would fire ten missiles, twenty missiles. I didn't believe they would reach these quantities. Not because they couldn't—I knew they had the technological capability—but because it was a blatant violation of everything we knew in the world." However, when the launches began, the systems were already ready. "I designed the Arrow system; I was the system engineer for many years and then the program director. I knew exactly where the system's capabilities lay and what it could handle, so I was not afraid of our specific scenarios."

"It Was Like a Sci-Fi Movie"

Levy shared that the system was built from the design phase to handle very large quantities of missiles in short periods. "We knew how to do it. I won't get into numbers of quantities and minutes, but we knew how to build such scenarios so the system would know how to respond." He recounted that when the ballistic barrage began, with over 100 missiles launched, he was already sitting in the command rooms. "I remember the business started playing and I sat in front of the screen. It was simply like being in a science fiction movie. You see a detection, you see a missile launch, you see a missile hit—and it repeats itself over and over."

At a certain point, he went outside. "I looked up at the sky, began seeing the fireballs from the explosions, and said that everything was running exactly as we designed the system. It was a great pride with a lot of confidence." After several intercepts, he noted, apprehension turned to confidence. "I already felt the system flowing. I still salute all the air defense combatants of the air force, who did holy work. Relatively young soldiers who sat in front of the screens and brought fantastic results."

Levy admitted that even the system developers did not expect such high results. "I don't think that even we, when we designed the system, thought that with these working methods we would know how to intercept over 90 percent of the attacking missiles." At the end of the event, he gathered his team members and told them a phrase etched in his memory: "35 years of hard work, development, and manufacturing culminated in a single moment and brought amazing results."

"It Is the Best Interceptor Missile in the World"

When asked if the Arrow is the best interceptor missile in the world, he replied: "I think quite modestly I can say yes." According to him, the system's advantage lies in the combination of its physical structure and Israeli algorithms. "First of all, it is small, it is agile, and it contains sophisticated algorithms built right here in Israel by the best minds at Israel Aerospace Industries."

He explained that the Israeli advantage does not rest solely on academic knowledge. "The Israeli mix means it is not enough that you were at the Technion and studied, or any other university. You were also in the army, and those next to you were also in the army, and you have operational experience and you understand what the battlefield looks like." This understanding allows engineers to incorporate a wider range of possible scenarios into the system and build a better response to changing threats.

Levy also addressed the recent system test, stating it ended with significant success. "Everything we wanted to happen happened exactly as we wanted. We came out satisfied, the defense establishment is satisfied, and so are the Americans—who are full partners in the Arrow system."

Future Generations and Hypersonic Threats

He noted that the entire project has relied from its inception on cooperation with the U.S. Missile Defense Agency. The Arrow array has already gone through several generations of development. Arrow 2 was originally built to deal with shorter-range missiles, and later, when Iran began developing Shahab missiles for ranges over a thousand kilometers, the need for Arrow 3 arose—designed to intercept threats at greater heights and ranges.

"Arrow 2 is already aging," Levy said. "In November 1998, we delivered the first missile to the air force. It makes no sense to replicate the same missile again. You have to look at what is happening in the arena and adapt the new missile to the threats—and that is how Arrow 4 was born." At IAI, he noted, they work on several generations simultaneously: the system already in service, the one about to be delivered, the system of coming years, and the future generation.

"Today we have both Arrow 4 and Arrow 5, and they will be complementary to Arrow 3. Together, the State of Israel will have the best multi-layered defensive system in the world."

Levy was also asked about the hypersonic threat and maneuvering missiles. He explained that while the term "hypersonic" is not always defined uniformly, these are threats the defense establishment is already preparing for. "There are maneuvering missiles in the world. The moment your enemy wants to reach an impact point with greater precision, they must maneuver," he explained. "Do we know how to provide a solution for this? Already today we know. Can we provide an improved solution in the next missiles? Certainly yes. That is where we are heading." The race, he noted, is always to stay ahead of the threat.

"There Will Never Be Enough Interceptors"

One of the central questions concerned interceptor inventory, amid reports of shortages in the United States. Levy refrained from a direct comparison between the countries but provided a clear answer: "There will never be enough interceptors. We always need to produce more, because we saw the capabilities of the other side."

According to him, the ballistic threat changes the nature of the campaign. "A warhead of half a ton or more, carried on a ballistic missile at high speed and hitting a populated area, does a lot of damage and takes many lives." Levy added that the cost of the defense system cannot be examined in isolation from the potential damage it prevents. "When you build sophisticated systems it costs money. But don't just look at how much it costs—look at the potential damage of the attacking missile."

He concluded that the sights from Tel Aviv and other focal points where hits were recorded demonstrated how crucial the defense array is beyond theory. "The system must be very precise, reach a distance and altitude of many tens of kilometers, and hit point by point. It won't be cheap."