03/12/2026
Anyone have any better information of the specifics of the Israeli nuclear stockpile, please share:
Delivery Systems
Originally, the weapons were delivered solely by aircraft (F4 Phantoms), but Israel now has three types of delivery systems.
The central system consists of the Jericho series of ballistic missiles all of which were primarily designed in conjunction with the French company Dassault. These are:
Jericho 1: A short range missile with a range of 310 miles. Jericho 1 missiles were housed in Zekharia, located in caves southeast of Tel Aviv, but are no longer believed to be in service.
Jericho 2: After the US refused to supply longer range missiles, Israel together with the Shah’s Iran jointly developed this 1,100-mile range missile. According to ex-secretary of State, Colin Powell, these have all (approximately 200 missiles) been pointed at Tehran.
Jericho 3: This missile, which is capable of carrying a 400-kiloton nuclear warhead, has an estimated range of up to 4,000 miles, bringing most of Europe (including Moscow and St Petersburg) within range. In a stunning example of “Capitalists will sell you the rope to hang them with”, it was co-designed by Dassault who also sold them parts and is within range. It entered service in 2010. It is said to be primarily aimed at Pakistan. Many of these missiles are housed in deep, first strike proof silos around Israel. It was one such silo that was targeted when an Iranian missile hit Beit Shemesh, where Israel accused them of deliberately targeting a Synagogue.
Jericho 4: This officially unannounced version of the missile, also believed to have been co-designed by Dassault, is capable of reaching anywhere in the continental United States, even Mar A Lago, as Bibi is wont to say. The Israeli government hasn’t disclosed why they need such a missile.
The majority are stored at the Sdot Micha airbase in nuclear proof bunkers built, in partnership with the US, into limestone bunkers with huge blast doors that can resist everything short of a direct nuclear strike. This base is protected by Arrow 3 air defense missiles, which are in turn controlled by the Green Pine radars. These radar systems are currently being targeted by the IRGC as they form an important part of the early warning system for the whole country.
The second line of delivery is via aircraft like the F15 and the F35. The bombs are said to be stored at Sdot Micha and the aircraft themselves are located at the nearby Tel Nov airbase.
The triad of delivery systems includes an uprated version of the Popeye ACLM cruise missile, which is launched via the torpedo tubes of Dolphin Class submarines, supplied by Germany and has a published range of around 200 miles but has been observed by the US navy as being able to hit a target over 1,000 miles away. Now that Egypt has allowed Israeli warships to transit the Suez Canal, these submarines have been observed transiting the canal on their way to the Indian ocean. It is believed that these are capable of carrying warheads with a yield of 200 kilotons and were specifically designed to target Iran from a safe distance. They can also be launched from F15 aircraft. The tests of the air launched version were conducted by launching a completely unprovoked attack against Syria in 2014. One missile (out of 4) was brought down by a Syrian BUK2 air defense missile. Non-nuclear tipped versions were also used to target the port in North Yemen last year.
Above info from
A review of the history of and best information about Israel's nuclear weapons program, including delivery systems and safety risks at Dimona
