Where Has the U.S. Deployed THAAD Missile Systems Worldwide? Threat Responses From Hawaii to Israel

The deployment of the first THAAD air defence systems by the U.S. Army to Israel announced on October 13 has highlighted the value of the highly mobile asset to quickly strengthen the air defences of threatened bases or allies. Deployment to Israel responds to Iran and Yemen’s demonstrated capabilities to launch long range <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/yemen-strike-israeli-defences-fail" target="_blank">missile strikes</a> against <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/strike-completely-destroys-f35-base" target="_blank">sensitive military targets</a> across the country, with THAAD optimised to intercepting such missiles in their terminal high altitude phases. The <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/israel-air-defence-shortages-iranian-hezbollah" target="_blank">depletion</a> of Israel’s own missile defences has made support from the system particularly important.&nbsp;The use of THAAD to rapidly respond to a regional contingency highlights the way prior deployments of the system have also consistently reflected trends in American threat perception.&nbsp;It is notable that the United States deploys only eight THAAD systems worldwide, with their extreme cost meaning they <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/airdefence-shortage-forces-danger" target="_blank" >cannot be widely deployed</a> or in significant numbers.&nbsp;Preceding the outbreak of large scale hostilities between Israel and regional states, THAAD deployments were heavily focused in the Asia-Pacific region.&nbsp;&nbsp;<img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2024/10/16/article_670fd6326ce644_71512774.jpeg" title="Missile Battery From THAAD System">The United States Army made its first deployment of a THAAD unit in June 2009, with the system stationed in Hawaii to provide defence against possible North Korean ballistic missile attacks. Advances in North Korea’s <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/north-koreas-guam-killer-why-america-hates-the-hwasong-12-ballistic-missile" target="_blank">intermediate range ballistic missile</a> program led a second THAAD unit to be deployed to Guam in 2013. The systems have also been tested on Wake Island, which has <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/china-and-n-korea-in-the-crosshairs-us-expands-airbase-on-disputed-wake-island" target="_blank">gained growing importance</a> in American plans for a potential war with North Korea as an alternative&nbsp;to Guam&nbsp;for basing. By far the most controversial and high profile deployment of the THAAD system subsequently occurred in 2016, when the U.S. Army began to deploy a system to South Korea. The system’s AN/TPY-2 radar provided the capability to provide coverage across much of Chinese territory, with a 3,000 km range and 120-degree field of view. South Korean security commentator and retired navy captain Yoon Sukjoon accordingly referred to the system as “part of the U.S.’ global anti-China united front. It’s become a strategic tool for containing China from one of the closest countries and one of the most trustworthy allies of the U.S.”&nbsp;<img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2024/10/16/article_670fd65bc094e7_74784528.jpg" title="AN/TPY-2 Radar From THAAD System">Mass protests in South Korea from 2016 highlighted a strong public consensus that the system made the country a target in the event of Sino-U.S. hostilities, with deployments being carried out secretly after a change of administration in 2017 as the new Moon Jae In administration had pledged to halt deployments. The coming to power of the strongly pro-Western and Washington favoured People Power Party in South Korea in May 2022 was followed by a rapid approval for expanded THAAD deployments, and it was soon afterwards announced that further units would be deployed by the U.S. Army at a second site in the country.In October 2019, the U.S. Army made its first deployments of THAAD systems to Saudi Arabia, reinforcing a battalion of Patriot air defence systems and locally operated Patriots purchased from the United States. The deployment was made in response to drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities attributed to Yemen or Iran, as well as Yemeni ballistic missile strikes, which preceded the Chinese brokered Saudi-Iranian rapprochement in early 2023. The deployment followed a <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/patriot-save-ukraine-combat-record" target="_blank">total failure</a> of Patriot systems to provide a viable defence against drone attacks. While the situational awareness provided by THAAD’s sensor suite is highly prized, the system’s combat performance has remained in question, with its testing record being highly mixed. The highly costly system has notably only been exported to one country, the United Arab Emirates, where it failed to intercept multiple relatively basic Yemeni ballistic missile attacks.&nbsp;