A key US missile defense radar system worth around $300 million has reportedly been destroyed during the ongoing conflict involving Iran and the United States.
Satellite images cited by CNN showed that the AN/TPY-2 radar – part of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) network – was destroyed at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan during the early days of the war.
A US official later confirmed the destruction of the facility, Bloomberg reported. Data collected by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies indicates two reported Iranian strikes in Jordan on February 28 and March 3, both of which were reportedly intercepted, the news outlet said.
Experts warn of a significant strategic loss
Defense experts cited by the reporter claim that a successful hit to the radar would represent one of Tehran’s most significant operational achievements in the conflict so far.
“If the Iranian attack on the THAAD radar was successful, it would mark one of the most successful Iranian attacks to date,” said Ryan Brobst.
However, Brobst noted that the US and its partners still maintain other systems in the region.
“The US military and its partners have additional radars that can continue to provide air and missile defense coverage and mitigate the loss of any single radar.”
What is the THAAD system?
The THAAD system – short for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense – is designed to intercept and destroy ballistic missiles at high altitudes, often near the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere. This capability allows it to counter more advanced missile threats than shorter-range systems such as Patriot batteries.
The AN/TPY-2 radar plays a key role in detecting, tracking and guiding interceptors towards incoming ballistic missiles.
A full THAAD battery typically includes:
-Six launchers mounted on trucks
-Forty-eight interceptor missiles
-One AN/TPY-2 radar system
-Tactical fire control and communications unit
Each missile manufactured by Lockheed Martin costs about $13 million.
Limited global inventory
The US military operates only eight THAAD systems globally, with deployments in locations such as South Korea and Guam. Each battery costs about $1 billion, with the radar component accounting for about $300 million, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“These are rare strategic resources and their loss is a huge blow,” said Tom Karako, a missile defense expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, quoted by the news site.
Karako added that the current force structure of the US military remains below the level of earlier planning.
“The current eight-battery Army is still below the nine-battery force structure requirement set in 2012, so there aren’t exactly any spare TPY-2s.”
Missile defense network live
The reported loss of the radar comes as air and missile defense systems in the Persian Gulf region face sustained pressure from Iranian retaliatory strikes involving drones and ballistic missiles.
According to research by the James Martin Center for Nuclear Nonproliferation Studies, a separate early warning radar — the AN/FPS-132 radar — located in Qatar was also damaged earlier in the conflict during an Iranian attack.
Unlike the mobile THAAD radar, the AN/FPS-132 system is designed to detect threats at very long ranges, but lacks the precision needed to guide anti-missiles.
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Concerns about the lack of interceptors
The cited analysts warn that continued missile attacks could further strain the US defense network in the region, especially as the stockpile of advanced interceptors – including THAAD and Patriot PAC-3 missiles – is already limited.
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