Israel Aerospace Industries to Supply Kamikaze Drones to Two Unknown Countries

23 November, 2023 The Harop UAV. Photo credits: IAI. Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has signed two separate agreements with two countries to supply kamikaze drones.

The company announced this on its website. The total value of the contracts is £145 million; the company does not disclose the countries that purchased the UAVs, contract details, or types of drones. "Loitering munitions have proven critical to achieving operational success on the battlefield worldwide.

The flexibility in strikes that can be achieved with a loitering munition is a major advantage in combat and the type of precision reached is of strategic and national importance. The latest orders emphasize the trust in IAI's loitering munitions family in bringing the required advantages to each country respectively" IAI's President and CEO Boaz Levy said.

The Harop UAV. Photo credits: IAI.

In its announcement, the company mentioned Mini Harpy, Harpy, and Harop kamikaze drones, so it is likely that foreign buyers chose these drones.

It can be assumed that the drones were purchased by countries that already operate these UAVs. For example, Azerbaijan could have replenished its stockpile after the recent battles in Nagorno-Karabakh. On September 14, Militarnyi reported that IAI had expanded its line of kamikaze drones.

Then the company presented the ROTEM Alpha Anti Tank Loitering Weapon. The drone is said to have great endurance both in the air and in a parking lot in standby mode. Previously, on June 26, it was reported that IAI announced the signing of contracts for the supply of Rotem loitering munitions to several unnamed NATO countries.

The Harop UAV.

Photo credits: IAI.

It was noted that the ordered unmanned systems were intended for use by the special forces of the customer countries. In total, the company signed three separate agreements for the supply of ammunition and related services. The recipient countries of the systems were not disclosed.

The exact volume and value of the contracts were not disclosed either, but they were said to be in the "millions of dollars".