Rafael tests SPYDER All in One air-defence system with Israeli MoD

A photograph released on 10 January 2024 shows a Rafael SPYDER All in One air-defence system launching a Python missile in a test. (Rafael Advanced Defense Systems)

Rafael and the Israel Ministry of Defense’s (MoD’s) Directorate for Defense Research and Development have completed a successful test of the All in One (AiO) variant of the company’s SPYDER air-defence system, it was announced on 10 January.

Carried out in December 2023, the test included the interception of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) “in a challenging operational scenario, achieving a direct and effective hit”, Rafael said in a statement. “The success of the test is a significant milestone in developing the system against different threats and demonstrates the system’s outstanding effectiveness in intercepting challenging ground-launched threats.”

Introduced at the Singapore Air Show in February 2022, the SPYDER AiO has its radar and command station on the same vehicle as the launcher and electro-optical sensor, rather than on separate vehicles like the other variants of the SPYDER family, which uses the Python-5, I-Derby, and I-Derby ER air-to-air missiles in the ground-based air-defence role.