Tel Aviv. The Israeli navy has destroyed most of the maritime capabilities of the Hamas terror organization in Gaza. The Hamas built their maritime force in order to perform terror attacks from the sea on Israeli targets.
Since the fighting between Israel and the Hamas began a week ago, the Israeli navy has managed to destroy most of the assets of the Hamas “Navy”. These assets included speed boats with explosive and even small underwater vessels loaded with explosives.
One of the main targets of the Hamas is the Israeli Tamar gas pumping rig in the Mediterranean. The Tamar platform is located approx. 25 km offshore Ashdod at a water depth of approx. 236 meters, and towers approx. 60 meters above sea level. Its total weight is approx. 37,000 tons and its total area is approx. 10,000 sqm. Around 50 workers, including several Israelis, operate the platform in 24-hour shifts. The electricity used by the platform is generated using natural gas produced from the reservoir.
Israeli sources told Raksha Anirveda that all the attempts to hit the rig failed. The C- Dome, a maritime version of the Iron Dome has been deployed in the area by Israeli navy. The C-Dome Naval defence system is made by Rafael and is based on the combat proven Iron Dome and designed to effectively protect combat vessels against a large set of modern threats. C-Dome handles saturation attacks by engaging multiple targets simultaneously. According to Rafael, the reaction time is very short and enables automatic and semi-automatic engagements.
C-Dome components include a multi-round launcher assembly loaded with vertically-launched canistered interceptors. The launcher is installed under the ship’s deck. C-Dome utilizes the ship’s own surveillance radar and does not require a dedicated Fire Control Radar. Weapon System Command and Control is seamlessly integrated with the ship’s combat management system, facilitating system operation.
Rafael emphasizes that C-Dome uses the combat-proven Iron Dome interceptor that has already achieved 90 % intercepts. Rafael says that the Interceptors are maintenance-free, and are stored in a sea-proof canister. Up to 8 interceptors can be loaded into a modular Vertical Launcher Unit.
-The writer is an International Roving Correspondent of the publication.
