JERUSALEM — Elbit Systems will supply the Swedish BAE Systems Hägglunds with its Iron Fist Active Protection System for CV90s in a deal worth $109 million, the Israeli firm announced Tuesday.
Elbit noted the systems are intended for a European country, but declined to identify it. Based on previous publications by BAE, it is likely the client is Slovakia.
BAE Systems announced in December it has been awarded a $1.37 billion contract by Slovakia to manufacture 152 CV90 infantry fighting vehicles and that they’ll be equipped with Iron Fist systems and SPIKE-LR anti-tank guided missiles from Rafael.
Slovakia approved the replacement of its army’s armored personnel carriers in May 2017, with a plan to invest up to 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) by 2029.
The Iron Fist system is meant to fend off anti-armor threats, such as rocket-propelled grenades, in both open terrain and urban environments. The system destroys threats by launching an explosive charge toward the incoming threat’s vicinity, and exploding it to create a shock wave that breaks apart or deflects the threat at a safe distance from the protected platform.
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Tzally Greenberg is the Israel correspondent for Defense News. He has experience reporting on economic affairs as well as defense and cyber companies.