A new highly sophisticated air-to-air missile developed by “Raphael,” Israel’s weapons development authority, will be unveiled to Israeli and foreign newsmen tomorrow. The missile, named “Shafrir” (Canopy) reportedly has been tested in combat.
No details of the missile or its testing have been published so far. It is believed to be similar to the American “side-winder” though more sophisticated. It reportedly has two homing devices–one radar controlled and the other infrared. The “Shafrir” was built at a reported cost of IL 90,000 at the “Raphael” workshops. Dr. Zeev Bonnen, director of “Raphael” headed the team that developed the weapon. The Defense Ministry is reportedly prepared to sell the missile to friendly foreign powers.
According to unofficial and unconfirmed reports the “Shafrir” has been employed in aerial combat and scored direct hits on Egyptian and Syrian jets that were downed during the past two years. Its existence was kept secret until now but was hinted at recently by Gen. Amos Horev, the Army chief scientist, who mentioned an air-to-air missile as one of the research projects in the security field that was selected for development. The name “Shafrir” was apparently derived from the fact that the missile provides a security canopy over Israel against air attacks.
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