JERUSALEM (VINnews) — In a historic first operational use of Israel’s ship-mounted Iron Dome defense system succeeded in intercepting from the sea a “suspicious” UAV which was flying near Eilat, according to a Times Of Israel report.
Join our WhatsApp groupSubscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
The advanced model of the Iron Dome, known as C-Dome, is deployed to the Navy’s Saar 6-class corvettes. It was declared operational in November 2022.
Sirens had sounded in Eilat after a “suspicious aerial target” entered Israeli airspace, according to an IDF report. The military said that the Navy tracked the target before successfully shooting it down with the C-Dome system, marking its first operational activity.
According to the IDF, the suspected drone had flown into Israeli airspace from the eastern direction, as opposed to past attacks by the Houthi rebels in Yemen from the south of Eilat. In recent weeks there have been several drone attacks on the Eilat area carried out by an Iranian-backed group in Iraq.
Beachgoers in Eilat filmed the moment of the interception over Eilat. Clips posted to social media showed two interceptor missiles being launched from the corvette.
תיעוד מהלילה: “כיפה ימית”, משגר כיפת ברזל המוצב על סטי”ל מדגם סער 6, משגר טיל מיירט לעבר כטב”ם עויין מול חופי אילת. הכטב”ם יורט בהצלחה. אין נזק ואין נפגעים. זהו היירוט המבצעי הראשון של “כיפת ים”
הכטב”ם חדר ממזרח, ככל הנראה מעיראק דרך ירדן pic.twitter.com/BLro6Hyp5a
— איתי בלומנטל 🇮🇱 Itay Blumental (@ItayBlumental) April 9, 2024
The southern port has been targeted on numerous occasions through the current war. In November, a school in Eilat was hit by a drone launched from Syria; in March, a cruise missile fired from Yemen struck an open area north of the city; earlier this month, a drone launched from Iraq struck a Navy hangar in the Eilat Bay; and also this month, a drone struck an open area in Jordan near southern Israel’s Ramon Airport.
The C-Dome — much like the ground version of the Iron Dome — is capable of downing rockets, cruise missiles, and drones, according to Israel’s Defense Ministry.
The Navy’s Sa’ar 6-class corvettes are normally tasked with guarding the natural gas platforms off Israel’s coast as well as its shipping lanes.
Amid repeated wartime cruise missile, drone, and ballistic missile attacks by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, the Navy announced in December that it had also deployed the INS “Magen” Sa’ar 6-class corvette to the Red Sea for the first time.