The BAAINBw has received the first IRIS-T SLM fire unit from Diehl for qualification and testing before it is scheduled to be handed over to the Luftwaffe from the end of 2025. (Diehl Defence)
The Bundesamt für Ausrüstung, Informationstechnik, und Nutzung der Bundeswehr (BAAINBw), Germany's Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology, and In-Service Support, announced in a press release on 6 August that it received the Luftwaffe's first IRIS-T SLM (Surface-Launched Medium-Range) fire unit from Diehl at the beginning of August.
The BAAINBw noted that the budget committee of the Bundestag, Germany's parliament, approved the procurement of six IRIS-T SLM fire units in June 2023 financed by the Sondervermögen der Bundeswehr special fund approved after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.
Each fire unit consists of a medium-range radar with a detection range of up to 250 km and three launchers with eight missiles each with a range of 40 km, supported by a common remote-controlled command post, which the BAAINBw said would reduce personnel costs. The system is mounted on an air-transportable standard 20 ft ISO container, with a modular design allowing quick installation, according to the BAAINBw.
In order to introduce the system into the Bundeswehr, its manufacturer Diehl Defence, had to adapt it to NATO interfaces so the fire units are integrated into the NATO Integrated Air and Missile Defence system. These adaptations will be qualified and undergo operational testing by the BAAINBw, with IRIS-T SLM expected to be available to the Luftwaffe from the end of 2025.
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