Israel signs agreement to sell David’s Sling air defence system to Finland

Israel’s Defence Ministry has signed an agreement for the sale of the David’s Sling air defence system to Finland, in a deal estimated at 317 million euros (NIS 1.3 billion).

Director General Eyal Zamir signed the “historic agreement” at the ministry’s headquarters, it says, in an event attended by Finland’s Ambassador to Israel Nina Nordström and Finnish Defense Attaché to Israel Col. Oula Asteljoki, The Times of Israel reports

The president and CEO of Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Yoav Har-Even; head of the ministry’s Directorate of Defense Research & Development, Dr. Daniel Gold; head of the Israel Missile Defense Organization, Moshe Patel, and other officials attended the signing.

David’s Sling, produced by Rafael, is capable of intercepting rockets and missiles at a range of 40-300 kilometres (25-185 miles).

The system has been operational in Israel since 2017 and makes up the middle tier of Israel’s multi-layer missile defence capabilities, which also includes the short-range Iron Dome and the top-level Arrow systems, which are intended to engage long-range ballistic missiles.

The system made its first real-world interception in May.