Rafael CEO: Iron Beam laser air-defense operational next year

Israeli company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Apple reported a record NIS 59 billion in orders at the end of the second quarter. Orders included a big and surprising increase in the Americas, and a slight decline in sales in Israel.

Rafael’s revenues in the second quarter amounted to NIS 3.9 billion, an increase of 25% over the corresponding quarter of 2023. New orders in the second quarter amounted to NIS 6.4 billion, an increase over NIS 3.9 billion in the second quarter of 2023.

Sales to Israel accounted for 54% of total sales in the second quarter, down from 59% in the first quarter. Sales to Europe during the period fell from 20% to 19%, sales to Asia rose from 17% to 18%, and sales to the Americas jumped from 3% to 8%. ZM recently reported that Argentina is considering buying Spike LR2 anti-tank missiles from Rafael, and the increase could come from such a deal.

“Since the beginning of the year we have hired more than 1,100 employees.”

“Since the beginning of the year we have hired more than 1,100 people,” Rafael CEO Yoav Turgeman told Globes. “A third of our activity is development, and we are investing enormous amounts of energy in shaping the future.” Turgeman says Rafael’s laser-based air defense system, Iron Beam, is expected to enter operational service next year, as previously announced. “Iron Beam is just one of the developments that are progressing at a good pace and have achieved global technological breakthroughs.”

One product that Torjman acknowledges is generating a lot of interest abroad is the Spike anti-tank missile, which Argentina is also reportedly interested in. The Spike series includes a variety of missiles, from the shoulder-fired model (the Spike SR), which weighs about 10 kilograms and has a range of 2 kilometers, to the Spike NLOS, which weighs 71 kilograms and has a range of 32 kilometers, and can be fired from land, air or sea platforms. The Spike series also includes the Firefly missile, a 15 kilogram air-to-air munition with a range of 1.5 kilometers, although most of the series is anti-tank missiles. “We are active in 41 countries with the Spike missile,” Torjman says. “There is a user club where they share knowledge and experience.”

This article was published in Globes, Israeli Business News – en.globes.co.il – on August 28, 2024.

© Copyright Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2024.