An F-15D takes off with a Blue Sparrow test missile. (The Israeli Air Force)
Two Western officials told The New York Times on April 20 the missiles used in the recent Israeli attack on Iran had technology that enabled the weapon to evade detection by Iranian radar systems.
Two Iranian officials also told the newspaper that Iran did not detect intrusions into its airspace during the attack on April 19, including drones or missiles.
The New York Times said that the warplane from which the missile was launched was “far from Israeli or Iranian airspace” and neither the jet nor the missile entered Jordanian airspace. Israel opted for this to to keep Amman out of any potential ramifications for the reprisal strike after it helped shoot down drones and missiles fired by Iran at Israel on April 13-14.
It’s worth noting that Israel struck several air defense sites in southern Syria during the attack, leading to speculation that Israeli warplanes launched their missiles from some area along the country’s border with Jordan or Iraq.
Contrary to The New York Times report, Iranian media reported the interception of drones over an air base near the city of Isfahan during the attack. There were also videos showing air defense fire.
Israel didn’t acknowledge the attack, neither was officially blamed for it by Iran. However, officials from the two countries as well as the United States confirmed to several news outlets that the Israeli military was responsible.
The remains of what is believed to be the first stage of the secret Israeli missiles used in the attack on Iran were found in central Iraq.
An basic analysis by SouthFront indicates that the weapon is an air-launched ballistic missile with two stages, most likely divertive from the Israeli Sparrow family of missile targets, more specifically from the mid-ranged Blue Sparrow version.
While air-launched ballistic missiles are extremely hard to track and intercept, they can be detected like any other type of aerial targets. The New York Times and its sources were likely exaggerating when claiming that the missiles could evade detection by Iranian radar systems.
According to recent reports in American media, one of three missiles launched by Israeli warplanes during the attack hit an air defense site near Isfahan that was part of an array defending the nearby top-secret Natanz nuclear site.
Satellite imagery shows damage to the radar of an S-300 system at the Eighth Shekari Air Base in Isfahan, The New York Times said in its report. However, this is yet to be verified.
The report said that the attack was deliberately designed to send a message to Iran of how a wider attack could look, which is an accurate assessment. Nevertheless, Israel exposed many of its secret capabilities and tactics in doing so.
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