- JERUSALEM -- An Israeli firm
has signed a contract to continue supplying the US Navy with "decoy"
missiles used to draw anti-aircraft fire in the war in Iraq, Israeli public
television announced on Sunday.
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- Israeli Military Industries has agreed to a $12,500,000
deal with the Americans to provide the improved Itald decoys in place of
the Tald model currently in operation in Iraq.
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- Iraqi television made great play of the discovery of
a spent Tald missile in Baghdad after four days of US-British bombardments
and foreign minister Naji Sabri used the find to allege that Israel was
taking part in the war to topple President Saddam Hussein.
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- But IMI disclosed it was an "air-launched decoy",
designed to simulate the appearance of an aircraft on enemy radar screens.
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- The Tald is fitted with wings allowing it to glide for
up to 35 minutes, is launched by an aircraft in flight, weighs 182kg, is
2.23m long and has a range of around 100km.
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- The Itald is equipped with a jet engine and has a range
three times as long, the public company disclosed.
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- The US military operating in Iraq is also equipped with
pilotless "Hunter" reconnaissance drones made by the same company.
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