First full Iron Dome interceptor produced in U.S. as Israel and Washington expand Tamir missile output
For the first time, a complete Iron Dome Tamir interceptor has been built on U.S. soil at the Raytheon‑Rafael plant in East Camden, Arkansas. The new production line broadens the supply base for a missile that Israel and the United States both rely on for short‑range air defense.
A U.S. production line has completed the first fully manufactured Iron Dome interceptor, marking a new stage in missile-defense cooperation between Israel and the United States.
The Tamir missile, the interceptor used by Israel’s Iron Dome system, was produced at the Raytheon‑Rafael Protection Systems (R2S) plant in East Camden, Arkansas. At a ceremony at the facility, Israel’s Missile Defense Organization in the Directorate of Defense Research and Development joined U.S. partners to mark the milestone and the expansion of the production base.
Iron Dome is a central part of Israel’s short‑range air-defense network. Each interception consumes a Tamir missile, which means that during heavy rocket or drone attacks, stocks can be drawn down quickly and must be replenished at scale.
A U.S. production line gives both countries more flexibility. Israel gains another source of supply that can surge output in a crisis. The United States, which has acquired Iron Dome batteries for its own forces, can now source interceptors from domestic manufacturing rather than relying solely on imports.
For Arkansas, the move brings more advanced manufacturing work to the East Camden plant and ties the local workforce more directly to global missile-defense demand.
What happens next will depend on planned production volumes in Arkansas, decisions on how much of that output goes to U.S. units versus exports, and whether similar co‑production arrangements are extended to other layers of Israel’s missile-defense architecture.
Sources
- OSINT