For the first time, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. will display all its anti-missile defense systems at an aerospace exhibition. At the Aero India 2013 exhibition in Bangalore, the company will display the Iron Dome short-range missile interception system and the Stunner interceptor against medium-range missiles used in the Magic Wand system, which is still in the test stage. Rafael will display the systems alongside the Spider air defense systems and Mic4ad integrated C4I air and missile defense system.
Rafael's anti-missile systems are attracting great interest among the world's militaries, following Iron Dome's success in intercepting rockets fired from Gaza against Israeli cities during the latest rounds of fighting. The Ministry of Defense has given Rafael the green light to sell the systems to other countries, although no contracts have been reported yet.
At Aero India, Rafael also plans to unveil its Spice precision weapon guidance kit, and the Spike family of multi-purpose tactical missiles, which have ranges of up to 25 kilometers.
Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) (TASE: ARSP.B1) also plans to display its latest wares at Aero India, including the Thrust combat helicopter training and debriefing system; the Ehud air combat training system, which has been adapted to planes made in the East in addition to planes made in the West.
Ahead of the exhibition, IAI has announced several contracts for signals intelligence systems worth $44 million with a foreign customer, whose identity has not been disclosed. Developed by IAI subsidiary Elta Systems, the system integrates state-of-the-art complex digital communications identification and interception technologies.
Elbit Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq: ESLT; TASE: ESLT) will also present at Aero India, where it will display new satellite-based naval observation system, which can cover extensive areas with the help of a maritime version of its Hermes 900 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The system was jointly developed with European company Windward Ltd. Elbit Systems says that the system was specially developed for India, based on the country's maritime defense needs.
Israeli companies have targeted India as a key market for the coming years, in part because of its huge defense budgets for the procurement of advanced weapons systems.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 3, 2013
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