Live Fire Demonstrations During AEWE 2021

The US Army evaluated Rafael’s SPIKE SR during the Army Expeditionary Warrior Experiment (AEWE) 2021 earlier this month, the company announced on 28 January.

AEWE 2021 assessed advanced technologies in support of the Army’s modernization efforts, including its six modernization priorities. A portable, electro-optically guided missile designed for today’s modern infantry, SPIKE SR is especially well-suited to enhance soldier lethality, one of those priorities.

SPIKE SR provides a light-weight (10kg) shoulder-fired munition, with an enhanced range of 2,000m, increasing lethality at the individual and squad level. Its features, including ease of use, allow lower-echelon infantry units to rapidly qualify and sustain a high operational tempo with minimal training.

AEWE assessed SPIKE SR as a precision munition system for infantry squads, for which portability and simplicity of operation are essential. AEWE also assessed the system for its ability to allow close-combat formations to dominate the operational environment and handle new threats in a near-peer conflict. During the assessment, live SPIKE SR rounds hit both static and moving targets in day and IR modes. Challenges included overcoming battlefield obscurants that effectively eliminated the target from the field of view. Soldiers were instructed on the weapon’s operation in indoor and outdoor training. US Army evaluators provided positive feedback on the system’s light weight, lethality and ease of use, compared to what is currently in use by the US Army.

Managed by the Army’s Maneuver Battle Lab, the assessment constituted the first live-fire demonstration of SPIKE SR on US soil.

“AEWE was an important opportunity to demonstrate SPIKE and multiple other Rafael systems. This included FIRE WEAVER, our sensor-to-shooter system, and BNET, our broadband IP [software-defined radio].. These systems, combined with SPIKE SR, can provide tactical overmatch by enabling high maneuverability and lethality. The live fire further demonstrated the effectiveness of SPIKE and provided a good opportunity for first-hand soldier feedback,” stated Lt Gen (Retd.) Joe Anderson, President and CEO of Rafael Systems Global Sustainment.

For a brief video of the event, click here

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