US fired over 600 missile interceptors defending Israel in three years

IN THIS NEWSLETTER: How the US spent $11 billion shooting down missiles for Israel since October 2023.Share*Latest newsletter for VIPs: US fired 19 years’ worth of Patriot interceptors in 7 monthsThe US fired an estimated 609 ballistic missile interceptors to defend Israeli territory from October 2023 through September 2026, based on my analysis of Pentagon budget documents, media reports, and open-source intelligence.This does not include the interceptors the US fired to protect its own military assets while waging war on Israel’s behalf, including the 30 Patriot interceptors US troops used on June 23, 2025, to shoot down 13 missiles fired at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar (Iran’s telegraphed retaliation for the US attacks on June 21), and virtually all of the approximately 1,800 Patriot interceptors the US fired in the first seven months of the Iran War.The ballistic missile defense interceptors the US has deployed in the Middle East over the last three years include the Standard Missile-3 (SM-3), SM-6 (the SM-2’s replacement, which has also been fired in the region since October 2023), Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), and Patriot.1 The SM-3 is designed to intercept ballistic missiles during the middle portion of their flight (when they’re in outer space), while the rest are designed for terminal-phase interceptions (after the ballistic missile reenters the atmosphere). THAAD, as its name suggests, is designed for higher-altitude engagements in the terminal phase. The others operate at lower altitudes. Interceptor cost increases with operating altitude. Below are the aforementioned interceptors, ordered from highest cost — and operating altitude — to lowest.2SM-3: $31 millionTHAAD: $12 millionSM-6: $6.3 millionPatriot: $5.3 millionThe US has used its most expensive interceptors to defend Israel against counterattacks from Iran and elsewhere in the region. Of the estimated 609 interceptors the US has fired in defense of Israeli territory since October 2023, 31% were the $31 million SM-3 and 62% were the $12 million THAAD.3 All told, the US spent $11 billion shooting down missiles for Israel from October 2023 through September 2026.SM-3: 186 (31%)THAAD: 378 (62%)SM-6/2: 43 (7%)Patriot: 2 (<1%)The US has fired more interceptors to defend Israel than Israel has. Data on Israeli interceptor use are limited, but based on a considerable amount of research (see the methodology section below), there doesn’t appear to be a plausible scenario in which Israel has expended more ballistic missile interceptors defending its territory than the US has.4 I estimate that for every Israeli interceptor fired, the US has fired 1.5 to 2 interceptors to shield Israel from the consequences of its actions.^Alt text for screen readers: US has fired over 600 missile interceptors defending Israel since October 2023. Estimated number and cost of US interceptors used to defend Israeli territory, by date. Table has four columns: Date, Interceptor(s), Fired, Cost (in dollars). Data are as follows: Oct 19, 2023; SM-2; 6; 34.7M. Apr 13, 2024; SM-3, Patriot; 10; 200.6M. Apr 13–Oct 1, 2024; SM-6; 17; 105.3M. Oct 1, 2024; SM-3; 12; 359.8M. Dec 26, 2024–May 22, 2025; THAAD; 16; 204.4M. Jun 13–24, 2025; THAAD, SM-3; 235; 4.8B. Feb 28–May 21, 2026; THAAD, SM-3, SM-6; 310; 5.2B. Jun 7, 2026; THAAD, SM-3; 3; 55M. Total: 609 interceptors, $11 billion. Not an exhaustive list. Estimated interceptor quantities include only those fired to defend Israeli territory, not those fired to defend US forces waging war on Israel’s behalf. Data: Pentagon procurement data, internal reprogrammings; open-source intelligence; media reports.The US also provides $500 million in missile defense aid to Israel every year, but that’s a topic for another newsletter.October 19, 2023: Pentagon officials stated that the USS Carney, operating in the northern Red Sea, intercepted three cruise missiles (and several drones) headed for Israel that were fired from Yemen. Media reported that SM-2 interceptors were used in the engagement.I estimate that six SM-2s were used to down the three missiles. This aligns with the historical interceptor-to-missile ratio for Red Sea engagements in 2023 and 2024. In January 2025, head of US Naval Surface Forces, Vice Admn. Brendan McClane, said, “We’ve done the analysis...and we’re at about two rounds per incoming missile.” The replacement cost of this engagement is the estimated number of interceptors fired times the unit cost of the SM-6 (because the SM-2 is replaced by the SM-6, they share a replacement cost).April 13, 2024: U.S. officials said the Iranian attack on Israel consisted of more than 300 munitions, including 100 ballistic missiles, 30 cruise missiles, and 150 drones. According to an April 14, 2024, CENTCOM statement, US forces “successfully engaged and destroyed more than 80 one-way attack uncrewed aerial vehicles and at least six ballistic missiles intended to strike Israel from Iran and Yemen.”One ballistic missile “assessed to be en route to Israel” was shot down by a US Army Patriot missile battery in Erbil, Iraq. I estimate that two Patriot interceptors were fired in this engagement. While it’s possible in theory that only one Patriot interceptor was used, in practice it’s much more likely that more than one were fired, for two reasons. First, standard US Army ballistic missile defense tactics are to fire a salvo of at least two interceptors at any one missile threat. Second, at least two interceptors per missile matches historical precedent; see, for example, the 30 Patriot interceptors fired from Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, against 13 incoming Iranian missiles in June 2025.The remaining missiles that were shot down were felled by the USS Arleigh Burke and Carney in the Eastern Mediterranean, according to Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj.

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