So far, Spain has long played a pivotal role in the multinational consortium behind the IRIS-T missile, led by Diehl Defence, currently in service with the Spanish Air Force
Diehl Defence will participate in this year’s FEINDEF expo event, taking place in Madrid, Spain, on May 12-14, where the company expects to strengthen its commitment as a key strategic partner for the development of air and missile defence capabilities.
The recent signing of a MoU for the development of IRIS-T Block II marks a new phase of cooperation, with Spanish firm Sener Aeroespacial y Defensa taking a lead role in designing the missile’s control and actuation systems. Also, the successful collaboration of Diehl Defence with the Spanish industry led to win an EDF call for tenders (HYDEF*), which will be expanded on an even wider scale into the next phases in the shape of EATMI (Endo-Atmospheric Interceptor). This cooperation on equal footing will contribute to the security of the participating countries in Europe.
Based on this track record, Diehl Defence is currently in advanced talks with major Spanish defence companies – such as Escribano, GMV, Indra, Instalaza, Navantia, Sener, SMS and Tecnobit – with the aim of offering the Spanish Armed Forces state-of-the-art global capabilities in air and missile defence, including hypersonic defence. This also serves to increase the strategic autonomy and national sovereignty of Spain in the missile systems sector. The initiative is based on leveraging the use of already combat-proven existing Diehl Defence weapon systems of the entire potential of the IRIS-T missile family (IRIS-T, IRIS-T SLM/SLX and HYDEF), on air-, land- and above all sea-based platforms.
To further underline its commitment to the desired and necessary collaboration with Spanish industrial partners and the willingness to show leadership, Diehl Defence is also considering the establishment of its own Spanish subsidiary. The aim is to build and develop a strong local supply chain, create highly-skilled jobs, and boost national industrial growth to ensure the need for state-of-the-art capabilities for the armed forces.
