Head of air defense development fired for security breach
Yair Ramati, head of the directorate that is developing major projects like the Arrow anti-ballistic missile, has been dismissed after it was found out that he stored classified materials on his personal computer.
A day after the dismissal, it was unclear whether the improper storing of information caused any damage. The projects Ramati led included interceptor missile system like Iron Dome and Arrow. He was appointed in 2012, having served as vice president in charge of marketing for Israeli Aerospace Industries. He is a world-renowned expert in the field of rocket engineering.
Ramati's dismissal was ordered by the new security director of the Defense Ministry, Nir Ben Moshe. Ben Moshe's staff are currently investigating whether or not Ramati's security protocol breach caused damage to national security. Ramati was fired just several days after a similar termination occurred in the IDF, when Colonel Ilan Levi of the Artillery Corps was dismissed when he left classified documents in his vehicle, which was then stolen.
The decision to fire Ramati came as a shock to many in the Defense Ministry and its affiliates, mostly due to his reputation and long-standing service in developing the field of Israeli aerial security for the past three decades.
The defense establishment learned of Ramati's dismissal just as the projects he oversaw reached a critical stage. Only two weeks after celebrating the successful test of the Arrow 3 anti-ballistic missile, the defense establishment's flagship projects could now face obstacles. He also led a series of tests of the David's Sling system, just weeks ahead of its delivery to the IAF.
Associates of Ramati were stunned by the forced departure of a man they who they said advanced Israel's military defenses exceptionally. "At the beginning of the nineties, when the Arrow project was just on paper and the idea was to intercept an enemy missile during flight and at a height of dozens to hundreds of kilometers, there were failures and disappointments," said one associate.
"Ramati managed to stabilize the project," added the source. He won great appreciation from American partners in many lectures and briefings in Israel and Washington. He knew how to explain the most complex things in the simplest way and had success with the large weapons manufacturer lobby in the US in convincing the Pentagon to invest American R&D budgets in the Israeli project."
