• Naval Warfare

  IMDEX 2023: Rafael offers ships laser air defence capability with Naval Iron Beam development

  2nd May 2023

  Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems is working to navalise the Iron Beam high-energy laser weapon giving ships another option to defeat incoming threats.

• Land Warfare

  Insight: Why the CV90 infantry fighting vehicle is making a clean sweep of Nordic markets

  19th September 2023

  Shephard Defence Insight explores the evolution of BAE Systems Hägglunds’ CV90 IFV from its inception in the late 1980s to the latest CV90 MkIV, detailing the order history and upgrade packages of its ten European customers.

• Land Warfare

  Israel-Hamas War: Israel’s fleet of armoured vehicles set to get their metal tested

  20th October 2023

  Israel appears to be set for a ground war in northern Gaza in what the Israeli government argues is an effort to destroy the capability of Hamas to attack Israel. It is an environment the IDF has fought in before and the army’s vehicles will likely have a key role.

• Air Warfare

  Meeting the needs of tactical forces with innovative UAS for mission success (Sponsored)

  31st May 2023

  With the growing global trend towards the use of UAS, Aeronautics is uniquely positioned as one of the leading companies in the world in that field

• Land Warfare

  UK and Poland cooperating on development of future common missile

  14th July 2023

  The UK and Poland will work together to develop a future common missile based on MBDA's Common Anti-Air Modular Missile (CAMM) as part of wider cooperation between London and Warsaw.

• Land Warfare

  Greece adds Spike antitank missiles to arsenal

  13th April 2023

  Greece is the latest NATO member to acquire Spike antitank missiles from Israeli manufacturer Rafael, under a government-to-government agreement.

• Land Warfare

  David's Sling to guard Finnish skies

  6th April 2023

  Finland's Ministry of Defence has authorised the procurement of David's Sling, a long-range air defence system from Israel's Rafael, worth around €316 million.

• Land Warfare

  Insight: The UK's Challenger 3 tank programme gets ready for service in 2025

  4th September 2023

  Initially planned for service entry between 2027 and 2030, the British Army's first Challenger 3 tanks remain on track for accelerated delivery in 2025. Shephard Defence Insight provides full technical details and a programme update for this vital UK armoured capability.

• Naval Warfare

  Israel marks milestone for Sa'ar 6 corvette fleet

  25th April 2023

  The Israeli Navy has declared its fleet of newly built Sa'ar 6 corvettes operational, with three having entered service.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Greece gets new Israeli Orbiter 3 drones under Spike deal

  18th April 2023

  Aeronautics will supply Greece with its Orbiter 3 UAV as part of a government-to-government contract for Rafael’s Spike missiles.

• Training

  Indra begins delivery of fighting vehicle sim to Spanish Army

  17th May 2023

  The delivery of the combat vehicle training systems includes a first section simulator made up of four vehicle simulators to several Spanish Army bases.

• Naval Warfare

  NAVDEX 2023: Rafael showcases maritime UAS defence with Typhoon RWS

  20th February 2023

  The Israeli defence company has improved its Typhoon RWS with the ability to defeat small and medium UAS.

• Naval Warfare

  IMDEX 2023: Two more Shaldag Mk V interceptors arrive in the Philippines

  2nd May 2023

  In April, two more Israel Shipyards-built Shaldag Mk V fast attack interdiction craft (FAIC) arrived in the Philippines.

• Land Warfare

  KMW refines RT60 turret-equipped Boxer 'Dragoon' module

  31st March 2023

  Krauss Maffei-Wegmann (KMW) has refined its Kongsberg RT60-equipped turreted Boxer variant, with a newer version based on the UK's Infantry Carrying Vehicle (ICV) module as a basis but with a strengthened roof.

• Land Warfare

  Polish Army signs new agreement for over a thousand armoured vehicles

  2nd March 2023

  Poland's defence minister has inked a deal with manufacturer HSW for 1,000 Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles, plus 400 specialist vehicles based on the same chassis, and the country is also looking to rapidly acquire a heavy IFV to deploy alongside its new Abrams tank fleet.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Vilkas [Lithuania - Second Batch]

  Programme Background  Lithuania's Boxers are manufactured by the ARTEC production lines in Germany and the Netherlands. KMW is responsible for producing 56 of the vehicles ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Vilkas [Lithuania - Additional Units]

  Programme Background  Lithuania's Boxers are manufactured by the ARTEC production lines in Germany and the Netherlands. KMW is responsible for producing 56 of the vehicles ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Vilkas [Lithuania]

  Programme Background Lithuania's Boxers are manufactured by the ARTEC production lines in Germany and the Netherlands. KMW is responsible for producing 56 of the vehicles ...

• Fighter - electronic warfare

  Jamming and Escort Electronic Attack Aircraft (luWES) [Germany]

  Programme Background According to earlier reports, Berlin had earlier decided to procure 15 EA-18G Growlers over the Eurofighter Typhoon ECR concept, which is expected to be ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  VCR (Spain - Second Batch)

  Programme Background Purpose The VCR programme is to replace several legacy wheeled and tracked vehicles currently in service with the Spanish Army including the BMR-600 6x6, ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  VCR (Spain - Third Batch)

  Programme Background Purpose The VCR programme is to replace several legacy wheeled and tracked vehicles currently in service with the Spanish Army including the BMR-600 ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  VCR (Spain - First Batch)

  Programme Background Purpose The VCR programme is to replace several legacy wheeled and tracked vehicles currently in service with the Spanish Army including the BMR-600 6x6, ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Boxer (Slovenia)

  Programme Background Requirement As part of its broader military modernisation plans outlined in its Medium-Term Defense Plan 2018-2023, the Slovenian MoD identified a requirement for ...

• Loitering munitions

  Loitering Munitions (Forecast) [Germany]

  Programme Background Three Systems In April 2023, Germany reportedly ordered three different loitering munition systems to further assess their suitability for use by the German Armed ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Project Land 400 Phase 3 [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirement: 2015 RfI The Land 400 Phase 3 programme will procure a new tracked IFV to replace the Australian Army's legacy fleet of ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Hunter [Singapore - Contracted]

  Programme Background Development of the Hunter began in 2006 and was assisted by Singapore's Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA). At least five variants of the platform ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Project Land 2097 Phase 4 - Australia

  According to the RfI, under Project Land 2097 Phase 4, the selected helicopter must comprise a commercial or military off-the-shelf solution that is already in ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Hunter IFV [Singapore - Forecast]

  Programme Background Development of the Hunter began in 2006 and was assisted by Singapore's Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA). At least five variants of the platform ...

• Corvettes

  Reshef Class [Israel]

  Programme Background Requirements The Israeli Navy is seeking a replacement for its Sa'ar 4 and Sa'ar 4.5-class of fast attack vessels. Dubbed Reshef-class, the new ...

• Tanks

  Leopard 2A8 (Norway)

  Programme Background Norway is in possession of 57 Leopard 2A4NO MBTs, but only around 30 of these are still thought to be operational with units. ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Spark

  The Spark is a fixed-wing UAV manufactured by Rafael Advanced Defence Systems and Aeronautics. Little is known about the drone, other than that, in September ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  BNET-V

  BNET-V is a MANET Software-Defined Radio for vehicles. Designed by Rafael, the multiband radio has a modular architecture and offers compatibility with several legacy systems.

• Air-to-air missiles

  Python-3

  The Python-3 is an Israeli beyond-visual-range anti-air missile developed by Rafael and emerged from Israel's earlier development of the Shafrir-1 and Shafrir-2 missiles. 

• Individual assault/anti-tank weapons

  Spike SR

  Part of Rafael's Spike missile family, the fire-and-forget, man-portable Spike Short Range (SR) EO-guided missile system has operational capabilities in all weather conditions. Although the ...

• Naval: shipboard communication systems

  SeaCom

  Rafael SeaCom is a shipboard communication system that integrates internal and external communication under a single suite. Featuring a modular design, the IP-based system can ...

• Crew-served assault/anti-tank weapons

  Spike LR2

  The Spike LR2 (NT-S) is Rafael’s fifth generation of the Spike missile and is backwards-compatible with existing Spike launchers.  Two warheads have been developed: a ...

• Naval guns

  Typhoon 25mm Naval Gun System

  Typhoon is a medium-calibre naval gun system developed and produced by Israeli Rafael. It was initially launched in 1997 (the Mk-23 version). Today, there are ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  Sea Breaker

  Sea Breaker is a precision-guided, long-range, autonomous missile system manufactured by Rafael. Debuted at DSEI 2021, the platform delivers pinpoint strikes from stand-off ranges up to 300km ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  BNET-HH

  Rafael BNET-HH is a handheld MANET radio which can form networks with up to 1,000 users at low latency. Designed as a platoon commander's radio, ...

• Self-propelled missile systems

  Iron Dome

  Rafael developed Iron Dome to provide a dual-role system which could be used for C-RAM and very-short-range air defence. Since 2011, Iron Dome has served ...

• Naval guns

  Typhoon Mk 30-c

  Typhoon is a medium-calibre naval gun system developed and produced by Israeli Rafael. It was initially launched in 1997 (the Mk-23 version). Today, multiple versions ...

• Air: Electronic Attack - Jamming

  Lite Shield

  Rafael’s Lite Shield RF jamming pod can equip combat aircraft such as the F-16C/D , along with other aircraft due to its ability to use ...

• Multipurpose missiles

  Spike ER

  The Spike ER is a fourth-generation, multipurpose missile fitted with EO charge-coupled device/imaging IR sensors for operation during the day, night and in adverse weather. ...

• Military - USVs

  Protector

  The Protector, having been in use since 2004, was the first USV to enter operational service. It is fitted with several subsystems that include; a radar, ...

• EO/IR systems

  Toplite

  Toplite is a stabilised, multirole, multi-sensor optronic payload. The Toplite day/night observation and targeting payload is configured for air, ground and naval surveillance and targeting ...