The government in Kyiv is pinning its hopes on western air defense systems, such as the IRIS-T that has now been delivered from Germany. The war technology should be an all-round protection against attacks. The system is manufactured by a little-known company from a small town on Lake Constance.
The hope of many people in the Ukraine lies on Lake Constance: there, in the small town of Überlingen with just 23,000 inhabitants, the IRIS-T SLM air defense system is being developed. Germany has now delivered the first of these systems to the Ukraine, with six more to follow. How does Iris-T work and who is the manufacturer from Baden-Württemberg?
The air defense system, one of which costs 140 million euros, consists of five parts: three trucks with rocket launchers mounted on them, a radar system and a command post. It is mobile and can protect a medium-sized city with more than 500,000 inhabitants and an area of about 200 square kilometers. Iris-T is capable of destroying planes, helicopters, drones and missiles up to 20 kilometers high and at a range of 40 kilometers.
The war technology is supposed to be an all-round protection against attacks, but like other systems it does not offer complete and 100 percent protection. So far, Diehl Defense has sold the weapon system to Sweden, Norway and Egypt - after prior approval by the federal government. The delivery to Cairo in particular is considered delicate and extremely controversial because of the geographical proximity to Israel and the involvement in the fight against the civil war in Yemen.
In an advertising film, Diehl Defense describes its weapon systems as "technology for peace and freedom". "With the development and production of guided missiles and ammunition for the army, air force and navy, the company is one of the technology leaders on the world market," writes the armaments group about itself on its website.
Diehl Defense is part of the family-run Diehl Group from Nuremberg, which started in 1902 with a foundry and is now a large industrial and armaments group doing business with heavyweights such as Boeing and Airbus. According to Diehl Defense, it has been supplying technology to the German armed forces for more than 50 years. Almost 3000 employees, including engineers, technicians and specialists, work for the company. This makes it the largest employer in Überlingen.
So business is going well for Diehl Defence. The management, consisting of four men, can look forward to full order books. According to its own statements, the company recently made sales of 660 million euros. It thus contributes one fifth to the total turnover of the group of companies. And the course continues to be set for growth: since the end of 2021, the Überlingen site not far from the shore of Lake Constance has been expanded and more employees have been hired.
This article first appeared on Capital.de.
