Israel to upgrade air defences, including commercial airline fleet

Israel has announced that it will install a new system to protect its airspace from terrorist attack and also upgrade existing civilian aircraft missile defences.

According to the prime minister''s office, the Israeli cabinet has been briefed about a soon-to-be installed system that will recognize planes flying in Israeli airspace. The system would identify any plane "in a way that would significantly reduce the danger of unidentified or hijacked airplanes entering Israeli airspace in order to perpetrate terrorist attacks," a statement said.

According to the statement, the current anti-missile system on Israel''s commercial airline fleet will also be upgraded.

"At the start of 2008, development will commence on a new technological system to replace the system presently being installed," it said, adding that Israel was "the first nation in the world to reinforce its commercial airline fleet against missile attacks."

On November 28, 2002, an Israeli jetliner came under attack from two missiles that narrowly missed the plane as it took off from Mombasa, Kenya, with 261 passengers on board.

In December 2005, it was confirmed by the Israeli transport ministry that Israel had begun equipping its national carrier El Al with an anti-missile system, the Flight Guard, developed by Israeli arms major ELTA.

Installation costs of the system are reported to be in the region of $1 million per aircraft.