Germany delivered the IRIS-T SLM anti-missile system to Ukraine, which proved to be very effective. The system could become the backbone of European air defense and is currently being tested in the Baltic Sea.
The military training ground of the Bundeswehr Todendorf is located directly on the Baltic Sea. It is a classic training ground, and recently a container complex was installed there, next to the old brick buildings. The Bundeswehr and the arms industry established a training center for air defense systems there. When he talks about it, the commander of the German Air Force and PVO Ingo Gerharz uses only superlatives.
He does not think that the cooperation between the industry and the German army is too close, and he especially praises the relations with the German family company "Diehl Defence", which led to the acceleration of the production of air defense systems.
He is also satisfied with the speed of procurement of the IRIS-T system for the Bundeswehr. The contract was signed in June this year, and the first system should arrive in the Bundeswehr next October. By 2027, the German army should have six such air defense systems.
IRIS-T SLM in the war in Ukraine
Two IRIS-T systems have been delivered to Ukraine so far, and the third should be delivered in the fall. In the wider area of Kyiv, the air defense system "Made in Germany" protects people and the so-called critical infrastructure from Russian Shahed drones, and above all from Kalibr cruise missiles.
So far, the German system has shot down more than 110 Russian missiles and drones, says Harald Bušek, one of the directors of the company "Dil Defense". During the spring of this year, the system even suddenly disabled a Russian attack with 13 drones. Namely, IRIS-T can target multiple targets at the same time.
The director proudly talks about the meeting with the mayor of Kyiv Vitaliy Klitschko and the Ukrainian ambassador Oleksiy Makeyev, who highly praise the German air defense system. At the same time, Bušek is impressed by how professionally the Ukrainians handle the anti-missile system from Germany. They do not use the maximum distance of 40 kilometers, but wait, despite the danger, until the Russian missiles get to 30 kilometers or closer. Only then are they shot down. This increases the security of a hit, which is supposedly "one hundred percent" around Kiev.
The German air defense system is used in the most difficult war conditions. If problems arise, Ukrainians can call the manufacturer directly. And the manufacturer, on the other hand, uses the ideas of Ukrainian soldiers to adapt the system even better to the needs of users. The Bundeswehr also benefits from this. Experiences on how the system is actually used are exchanged.
IRIS-T SLM on track to become an export hit
The successes in Ukraine also made others interested in the German air defense system. For the "Dil defense" company, this means a business worth billions. The company does not want to reveal what the official price is, they only say that production capacity is increasing so that next year they can produce up to 500 rockets, and by 2025 eight complete systems consisting of radar, command center and rocket launchers.
The IRIS-T SLM could become a German export hit. That is why, from the point of view of the "Dil Defense" company, it is understandable that, together with the Bundeswehr, they built a training center, halls and a concrete runway in record time, so that they could practice on the systems installed on three trucks.
"European Air Defense Academy"
The German military sees advantages in cooperation with industry, because, according to them, the IRIS-T SLM should become an important part of the European anti-missile shield. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, in his speech on the future of Europe a year ago in Prague, announced the so-called "European Sky Shield" initiative, which is starting to be implemented through the "European Air Defense Academy" training center. on the Baltic Sea.
The Bundeswehr wants to lead the way and hopes for international cooperation. German Air Force Commander Gerhart would like as many nations as possible to use the IRIS-T system and for militaries to cooperate with each other.
So far, the air defense system, the IRIS-T SLM and the new training center have been visited by 14 aviation inspectors from other countries. Some have already shown interest in that system - but Germany's most important partner, France, was not among them. They apparently want her to continue working on her own air defense systems.
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