Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) (TASE: ARSP.B1) unit Elta Systems has signed a deal to supply multi-task radar systems to the Finnish army. Elta declined to state the price of the deal or the number of systems that would be delivered to Finland, but defense market sources said the deal was for tens of millions of dollars.
The Finnish army selected Elta's radar in a tender, beating out a European company in the last stage. The radar systems that Elta will supply are C-MMRs from the MMR series, which also includes radar systems used by the Iron Dome active missile defense system.
These radar systems are smaller than the ones used for Iron Dome. They can identify rocket fire, artillery shells, and mortar shells, and provide warning of such launchings.
Elta told "Globes" today that because they are multi-task, the radar systems to be supplied to the Finnish army are capable of simultaneously identifying artillery fire and conducting aerial surveillance, and can therefore significantly restrict air movement of hostile forces in various areas.
Elta CEO Yoav Turgeman said today that the system would be delivered to Finland in 2021, and that the company had already sold over 100 MMR systems worldwide. "These systems provide a solution for a wide range of operational needs, while creating a full aerial picture and a response to a wide variety of threats," he said.
Turgeman added that Elta was preparing for additional tenders for procurement of radar in both Finland and other European countries.
This is IAI's second deal with the Finnish army in the past year. Last summer, IAI reported that it would supply the Finnish navy with Gabriel sea-to-sea missiles for €162 million. The deal included an option for follow-on procurement amounting to over €190 million.
Defense sources said that the under the deal, IAI would supply Finland with the Gabriel 5, the most advanced version of this missile.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on January 21, 2019
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