In the aftermath of the David’s Sling aerial defense system shooting down an Iranian ballistic missile in June 2025, the Defense Ministry announced new successful shoot-down drills on Wednesday.

Both the Defense Ministry and David Sling manufacturer, Rafael, refused to discuss the exact scenarios due to information security considerations.

But sources told The Jerusalem Post that the scenarios David’s Sling addressed during the drill were more diverse than in past drills.

Part of what was remarkable about David’s Sling’s shoot down of an Iranian ballistic missile in June 2025 was that traditionally its range has been framed as focused on threats from 40 to 300 kilometers out, not threats from 1,500 kilometers out like Iranian ballistic missiles.

The drill took place in the shadow of a possible American attack on Iran, which could lead to the Islamic Republic lashing out with its ballistic missiles at Israel.

According to Rafael’s website,  David’s Sling combines “innovative steering control, multi- propulsion, and an advanced seeker, it defeats high-volume asymmetric threats including tactical ballistic missiles and large-caliber rockets.”

Using David’s Sling to shoot down ballistic missiles takes some of the pressure and high cost off of the Arrow 3, which is produced by Israel Aerospace Industries, but is far more expensive.

A statement by the ministry on Wednesday said, “The test series was built on operational lessons learned from recent combat and included a wide range of challenging scenarios simulating existing and emerging threats. The success of these tests marks another significant technological and operational leap in the system’s upgrade, following its proven track record of high operational performance during the war, including successful interceptions that saved lives and prevented substantial damage.”

Israel and Iran learn aerial battle and defense tactics from each other

IDF officials have told the Post that both Israel and Iran learned new aerial battle and defense tactics from watching each other’s moves during two massive exchanges of fire in 2024 and the third, even more massive exchange of fire in June 2025.

Originally developed as Israel’s mid-tier middle defense to shoot down cruise missiles which fly in a more line-drive fashion – as opposed to rockets which Iron Dome shoots down, which fly in a predictable arch – over time, David’s Sling has evolved to shoot down any of the aerial threats which Israel faces, whether short, medium, or long range.

David’s Sling has now been in operational use for years and used throughout the 2023-2025 Middle East War, including to defend against threats from Iran and Hezbollah.

The MMR radar for David’s Sling is developed by Elta, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), and the command center is developed by Elbit Systems.

Ministry Missile Defense Director Moshe Patel stated, “During the war, and particularly during Operation Rising Lion, IMDO personnel implemented real-time modifications and adaptations that dramatically enhanced the capabilities of the IAF air & missile defense systems, with David’s Sling in particular.

“As part of our planned development programs, we conducted an extensive test series to assess future capabilities and the ability to contend with multiple, diverse threats. The series concluded with complete success, enabling a significant upgrade to the State of Israel’s air and missile defense architecture,” he said.