ABSTRACT
Beginning during the 1950s and extending through the mid-1960s, the Egyptian military sponsored a missile program staffed by German engineers and scientists to develop ballistic missiles and a satellite launch vehicle based upon experience gained with World War II German missiles. During the early 1970s, detailed plans were formulated for a new war against Israel and the recapture of the Sinai Peninsula, Egyptian Chief-of-Staff, Lt. Gen. Saad el-Shazli, sought to provide his army with all possible firepower. To this end he ordered that the al-Zafir and al-Kahir missiles be taken out of storage and test fired. The 1973 Arab-Israeli War was the first post-World War II conflict to witness use of a wide range of modern rocket/missile systems. Egyptian and Syrian use of such systems has been studied by most Third World nations as they have developed their own ballistic missile inventories and capabilities. The 1973 War witnessed the first combat use of the Soviet SCUD-B and the FROG-7A.
