Israel successfully conducted the second flight test Friday of its upgraded Arrow interceptor as U.S. officials looked in the partnership between the two allies to counter regional threats.

The Arrow interceptor. Photo by Israel Aerospace Industries
The Arrow interceptor. Photo by Israel Aerospace Industries

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz said the Arrow III interceptor took flight over the Mediterranean Sea en route to space. The test did not involve intercepting a target, the newspaper reported.

“The Arrow III interceptor successfully launched and flew an exo-atmospheric trajectory through space,” the Israeli Defense Ministry said in a statement, according to Haaretz. The U.S. ambassador to Tel Aviv, Dan Shapiro, also confirmed the test on his Facebook page, calling it “another step forward in US-Israel cooperation in ballistic missile defense and ensuring Israel’s security.”

The United States is assisting Israel in the development of the defense system for missile threats allegedly posed by Iran and Syria and possibly Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. Israel hopes to deploy the Arrow III next year to begin replacing the Arrow II, Haaretz said.

Arrow III is the long-range part of a multi-layered missile defense system that Israel is pursuing. The U.S. government and Boeing [BA] are partners on the project under the oversight of the state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries.

Iron Dome is the shorter range asset in the defense system, while David’s Sling is designed for medium-range threats and is still under development.