
The Standard Missile 3 Block IB, launched by U.S. Navy destroyers, made its combat debut on April 13 when it countered Iran’s barrage attacks on Israel. The SM-3 Block IB intercepted Iranian medium-range ballistic missiles in the exo-atmosphere, more than 62 miles above the Earth’s surface. Yet just a few weeks earlier, President Joe Biden’s defense budget terminated production of that same missile in an attempt to “pivot from and discontinue” the SM-3 Block IB procurements in favor of the longer-range SM-3 Block IIA. In fact, these missiles are a...