Azerbaijan purchases Sky Dew missile-detecting balloon from Israel
ArmInfo.Azerbaijan purchased a Sky Dew high-altitude balloon system from Israel, which is equipped
with an advanced early warning system for missiles and aircraft.
According to Turan, citing local media, Sky Dew's mission is to
detect cruise missiles, drones and other advanced airborne threats
flying at low altitude and provide early warning. For this purpose,
the balloon is equipped with a long-range AFAR radar.
The balloon is able to provide continuous surveillance for several
days and is capable of tracking up to 500 targets with a detection
range of more than 250 km. It is also capable of avoiding ground
clutter, is especially useful for detecting low-flying threats.
The upper limit of the balloon's altitude far exceeds the limits of
ground-based radars, providing a much greater visibility range to the
horizon.
The Sky Dew balloon is one of the largest of its kind and was
developed by a joint venture between the Israel Missile Defense
Organization and the US Missile Defense Agency. Israeli media write
that the sensitive radar located on the airship is not only
relatively economical in resources, but also durable and does not
require expensive maintenance.
Data transmission between the Sky Dew balloon and its ground station
is carried out via secure fiber optic data links.
Last November, it became known that Azerbaijan would purchase
additional Barak MX air defense systems from Israel, designed to
protect against airborne threats such as aircraft and missiles.
According to Defense Industry Europe, the deal will be worth $1.2
billion. According to the source, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI)
previously demonstrated the capabilities of the Barak MX in
Azerbaijan; the tests included multiple launches of interceptors of
various versions of this system.
Barak MX is a modular mobile air defense system capable of protecting
against missiles of various modifications, as well as against
airborne objects such as airplanes, helicopters and UAVs. The system
includes three types of interceptor missiles with different ranges:
up to 35 km, up to 70 km and up to 150 km. All components of the
Barak MX ground system can also be integrated on trucks and deployed
to temporary operating sites.
According to estimates by the Stockholm International Peace Research
Institute (SIPRI), in 2018-2022, Azerbaijan was one of the key
importers of weapons from Israel (Azerbaijan's share in Israeli arms
exports is 9.1%).