THAAD

The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense — a wheeled, hit-to-kill interceptor system that destroys short- and medium-range ballistic missiles in their terminal phase, both inside and just above the atmosphere, and the only dedicated upper-tier BMD layer to have seen combat.

Overview

THAAD is a mobile terminal-phase ballistic missile defense system fielded by the United States and sold to the UAE and Saudi Arabia. A battery combines a long-range X-band radar, six to eight truck-mounted launchers, and a pair of fire-control and communication nodes into a single road-mobile unit designed to intercept short-, medium-, and limited intermediate-range ballistic missiles at altitudes between the low endo-atmospheric and exo-atmospheric regimes. Unlike the Patriot and S-400 families, THAAD engages no aerodynamic targets—it is purpose-built for the ballistic-missile kill chain.

🔒 The full THAAD file is for BattlePolicy Pro members. Below the line: development history, design and capabilities, variants, the combat record, advantages and limitations, comparable systems, outlook, the full specifications table, our sourcing, and the analyst assessment — procurement, suppliers and the BattlePolicy verdict. Unlock the full file with BattlePolicy Pro →