Electronic Warfare / Air Defense Battalion 139 “Soft Defense” Company, “Anti-Drones” 2020-2021

The unit in the Air Defense System (ADA) that dealt with “soft defense” until a few years ago is Battalion 139, also known as the one that operated the **”Diamond”** (Patriot) system and its detection and jamming capabilities.

It is important to note the following points regarding this activity:

• Soft Defense (Soft Kill): In the AD system, the term referred to electronic warfare (EW) capabilities and active jamming of enemy weapons and navigation systems, without physically destroying them with an interceptor missile (Hard Kill).
• Organizational change: Until the end of the previous decade (around 2020-2021), the field of “soft defense” was an integral part of the training of AD fighters in certain battalions. However, as part of a reorganization in the system, it was decided to concentrate the air defense capabilities under dedicated units specializing in the electromagnetic spectrum, and some of the capabilities were implemented more broadly or transferred to the responsibility of central air defense elements in the Air Force.
• Battalion 139: This battalion was the central focus where these capabilities were integrated alongside the Patriot system. In recent years, the battalion has undergone significant changes, including the absorption of new systems and a change in operational designation, which led to the cessation of this specific role definition as it was previously known.

In 2020–2021, shortly before its temporary closure (January 2021), the 139th Battalion of the Air Defense System was the leading battalion in the IDF in the field of soft defense against drones.

The following are the main activities and roles of the battalion in this field during that period:

• Establishment of the C-UAS (Anti-UAS) Company The battalion was the first to establish and operate a dedicated company whose role is to protect strategic assets and the country’s borders from infiltration by drones and small UAVs.
• Use of “soft defense” systems: The battalion deployed technological systems based on electronic jamming and taking over the drone’s frequencies to neutralize it without resorting to physical interception (hard kill). The main system used for this purpose is the Drone Guard (from Israel Aerospace Industries).
• Operational missions (2020): The battalion’s fighters were deployed in hot spots, including on the Gaza border and in the north, to provide a response to drone threats used for intelligence gathering or terrorist purposes.
• Closure of the battalion and change of designation (2021): In January 2021, the battalion was closed as part of the Air Force’s streamlining process, and the soft defense mission was distributed among other units in the formation.

Important to note: In May 2024, the battalion was re-established, but today its main designation is to operate the Iron Dome system (hard defense) to expand the national defense envelope