Israel Discusses JASSM Missile Procurement With US
Israel’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) is reportedly in “advanced talks” with the US to procure Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM) from Lockheed Martin.
Further details of the reported deal are not clear, the Israeli newspaper Globes stated.
The MoD refused to comment on the report while Lockheed Martin asked to refer it to the US government, according to the outlet.
“Foreign military sales are government-to-government transactions and we work closely with the US government on any military sales to international customers,” Globes quoted the company as saying.
“Discussions regarding sales to foreign governments are best addressed by the US government.”
Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile
First inducted in 2009, the air-launched missile has standard and extended range versions.
The basic version features a maximum range of about 370 kilometers (230 miles), while the extended range can strike up to 930 kilometers (578 miles) away.
The missile’s 450-kilogram (992 pound) blast fragmentation warhead allows it to damage heavily defended ground targets such as command and control posts and air defense systems.
Though the missile is unlikely to cause any damage to Iran’s deeply-buried nuclear sites in a potential conflict, it would provide an additional option to the Israeli Air Force to strike certain targets from a stand-off range.
Israel primarily relies on its air-launched ballistic missiles to attack enemies from standoff ranges due to their greater speed.
However, cruise missiles like JASSM-ER (extended-range) typically have a higher payload to weight ratio than ballistic missiles, allowing it to deliver more explosive per munition, according to an article published by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a DC-based think tank.
