Using a $50,000 interceptor against a cheap rocket can be rational when the rocket threatens far more valuable people, infrastructure, or equipment. The correct comparison is damage prevented rather than the purchase price of the incoming weapon. Guns such as the 76 mm may offer a lower-cost option, but only if they provide adequate probability of interception. Published Western unit prices are often credible because politicians scrutinize cost closely, yet the figure is not simply manufacturing expense. It includes research distributed across the order, continuing development of successor systems, and a commercial profit margin. That is why larger orders lower apparent unit cost and why a government dockyard can sometimes build more cheaply than a private yard that must add profit. Evaluating an interceptor therefore requires asking what it protects and what its quoted price actually contains.
Notable Point · 1:30:32-1:36:33
Price air defense by damage prevented
A munitions-cost discussion argues that an interceptor's value should be measured against the damage it prevents, not merely the price of the incoming weapon.