Israel’s Space Program is in Deep Crisis

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By Arie Egozi

“The continuous offensive on the Israeli space program is in fact a direct offensive on Israel’s security”, an Israeli Ministry of Defense senior source said this morning.

The source added that professional ranks in the Ministry have been warning for years that budgets were dwindling and that there was no master plan, “however no one  in the government actually cares”.

It was already in the 80s that Haim Eshed, then head of the Defense Ministry’s military space program, warned against the damage to the Israeli space program. Others also cautioned against the consequences, but nothing has been done.

Israel has been developing and manufacturing advanced communications and intelligence satellites. However, the responsibility for the implementation of the programs has been divided among the various ministries of defense, communications and science, therefore there has been a lot of confusion in this field”, the source added.

According to the same source, the needs and requirements of the Israeli space program have not been thoroughly discussed for years. “If an emergency situation regarding this issue is not declared – all the knowledge accumulated in this field will disappear. The experts will relocate to other countries, where they will be offered enormous salaries, and Israel will remain without a thriving space program”, the source added.

He evaluated that although Israel has accomplished impressive technological achievements in the space sector in the past, without a clear plan – the whole program might go downhill.

The intelligence and communications satellites capability constitutes a prime defense need for Israel. It is a capability that a state in Israel’s situation must nurture and cultivate persistently, with the support of large budgets.

“In Israel the management of this whole sector has been conducted as in a small grocery store, living from hand to mouth. It is impossible to continue this way”, cautioned the senior source.

He said that if there would have been a plan – the space program could have granted Israel with large scale export opportunities.

Although the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) exported a few intelligence satellites, the source claims that the export potential is much more broad. “However, the government does not support export, and every minister contends that it is the minister sitting next to him at the government table who is responsible for the space program”.