Tel Aviv: The extensive use of the Rafael SPIKE missiles in the war that broke out on October 7, 2023 and the operational results create big interest in many European countries, as some already operate this family of missiles.
The 20th annual SPIKE User Club Meeting (SUCM), held in Bratislava, Slovakia, marked a major milestone—two decades of collaboration, learning, and advancement in the field of precision-guided missile systems.
According to the Israeli company, the representatives from some 25 countries, SUCM 2025 reaffirmed the global relevance and interoperability of the SPIKE family.
This year, Rafael focused on Mass Precision Fires to targets beyond line of sight, with deep-dive sessions into Tactics and Doctrine, as well as Logistics, Training, and Simulation.
The event also spotlighted the latest SPIKE advancements, including the new ODT-MK2 system, an outdoor simulator for SPIKE operators. This simulator drew significant interest from defence professionals and end-users.
The Rafael SPIKE missile family, developed by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, is a series of electro-optical, fire-and-forget, and precision-guided anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) used extensively in modern conflicts. As of 2024, the SPIKE family is in its sixth generation and is considered among the most combat-proven ATGMs worldwide, with over 40,000 units produced and 41 countries as operators, including 20 NATO members.
The SPIKE family includes several variants tailored for different operational needs:
- SPIKE SR (Short Range): Lightweight, shoulder-launched, 2 km range, designed for infantry.
- SPIKE LR2 (Long Range): Fifth-generation, multi-platform, up to 5.5 km range, advanced targeting modes.
- SPIKE ER2 (Extended Range): 10–16 km range, for vehicles, helicopters, and naval units.
- SPIKE NLOS (Non-Line-of-Sight): Up to 50 km range, for deep strike from land, air, and sea platforms.
- SPIKE Firefly: Miniature loitering munition for urban and complex environments.
Guidance is performed by electro-optical and fiber-optic/RF link guidance, enabling fire-and-forget, fire-observe-update, and fire-to-target-coordinates modes.
The warhead is a tandem HEAT one capable of defeating advanced armour, including reactive armour.
The missiles can be launched from infantry, vehicles, helicopters, and naval vessels, with rapid deployment and high survivability for operators.
The SPIKE family is actively used in ongoing conflicts and by multiple armed forces worldwide, including recent adaptation efforts by the US Army to meet evolving operational requirements.
The US Army is evaluating and refining variants like the SPIKE LR2, SR, ER2, and Firefly for integration into its arsenal, aiming to enhance strike capabilities across conventional and asymmetric warfare scenarios.
SPIKE missiles have been used by Azerbaijan in the second Nagorno-Karabakh war against Armenian tanks, further demonstrating their combat effectiveness.
-The writer is an Israel-based freelance journalist. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda
