interceptor

American  

[in-ter-sep-ter] / ˌɪn tərˈsɛp tər /

Or intercepter

noun

1. a person or thing that intercepts.

2. Military. a fighter aircraft with fast-reaction capabilities, used to identify and, if appropriate, engage other aircraft in combat.

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interceptor British  

/ ˌɪntəˈsɛptə /

noun

1. a person or thing that intercepts

2. a fast highly manoeuvrable fighter aircraft used to intercept enemy aircraft

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Etymology

Origin of interceptor

1590–1600; < Latin, equivalent to intercep- ( intercept ) + -tor -tor ( def. )

Example Sentences

It has proposed swapping its interceptors for the vastly more expensive air-defence missiles that Gulf countries are using to down Iranian drones.

From Barron's

Long and costly production timelines make the depletion of high-end interceptors, like Israel's Arrows, particularly critical.

From Barron's

“The number of interceptors of every type is finite,” said Tal Inbar, a senior analyst at the U.S.-based Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance.

From The Wall Street Journal

Tom Karako, the missile defense ace at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said recently he is “dreading” finding out how many air defense interceptors the U.S. has fired.

From The Wall Street Journal

These Aegis Ashore systems fire the same interceptor missiles currently being used by the US Navy to shoot down Iranian ballistic missiles.

From BBC