Joint Development Between Rafael and Israeli MoD

The Israeli MoD has ordered Rafael’s SPIKE FireFly loitering munition for Israeli Defence Force (IDF) ground forces, the company announced on 4 May.

Jointly developed by the MoD and Rafael, the 3kg munition – known as MAOZ in the IDF – provides dismounted troops with the ability to engage targets behind cover, in situations in which situational awareness may be precarious but precision is critical. 

FireFly is rapidly deployed within seconds. It is portable, durable and includes a rugged airframe to withstand the harsh environment of urban combat. It features a dual seeker, target tracker, homing algorithms, computer vision, ‘safe & arm’ fusing mechanisms and a rugged tablet-based man-machine interface. The operation of FireFly is very intuitive, with no special skills required. It enables overmatch to break combat deadlock and has a lethal effect on stationary and moving targets, with or without line-of-sight to the operator.

FireFly has an abort/wave-off capability and can be safely returned to the operator at any point up to the attack command being given. It can be operated day and night and has low visual and acoustic signatures.

Dr Ran Gozali, EVP and Head of Rafael’s Land & Naval Division, commented “We believe the procurement of FireFly by the IDF will dramatically revolutionise the infantry doctrines in urban close-combat, enabling precision engagement for the lower tactical echelons beyond-line-of-sight. This will give IDF soldiers a tactical edge in close combat. We see the FireFly as a building block in future potential applications for a large variety of battle arenas.”