Missile Defense Program Takes Strides Forward

Our fifth successful missile defense intercept test since June of 2006 sends a clear message to Iran and North Korea that their ability to threaten and coerce with ballistic missiles is short lived.

More importantly this fifth successful missile defense intercept test since June of 2006 and the United States 44th successful missile intercept test since 1999 sends a very clear message of dissuasion to those nations proliferating ballistic missiles including Iran and North Korea.

Build it and they will not come.

The THAAD (Theater High Altitude Area Defense System) achieved its third successful realistic operational test as it intercepted a single stage SCUD missile off the coast of Kauai at the Pacific Range Test Facility 7:20am Friday January 26th, 2006 Hawaiian Time.

THAAD offers the Combat Commander a much more robust and wider area coverage as this mobile land based system can add much greater protection then the current Patriot 3 Systems in place today in the AOR (Area of Responsibility) in PACOM and CENTCOM.

Patriot 3 system is a terminal system that is point defense covering a small area such as city blocks whereas THAAD can is an high altitude and lower space interceptor that cover large areas like size of states and provinces.

The Department of Defense will be submitting a request for 2 THAAD batteries made up of 2 radars and 48 missiles.

The deployment and development of THAAD adds to the redundancy and overall effectiveness of the current deployed missile defense system as it protects an undefended gap between lower space and upper atmosphere that is not defended by the other deployed systems which are made up of Ground Based Interceptors, Sea Based SM3 Interceptors on Aegis Ships and the Ground Based Patriot 3 systems.

The THAAD system has been championed from its inception to where it is today by bi-partisan support specifically from Democratic Rep Silvestre Reyes of Texas and Republican Terry Everett of Alabama.