The prize committee stated: “The development of these aircraft reflects innovation, creativity, courage and technological initiative over many years, along with extraordinary cooperation between the IAI and the Ministry of Defense and Israel Defense Forces.” These aircraft implement advanced Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) technologies across all operational domains.
During the ‘Iron Swords’ war, the Shavit, Eitam and Oron maintained exceptionally high availability and accumulated vast operational hours over a twenty-two-month period. They played a central role in protecting Israel’s skies and maintaining intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance superiority.
Unlike legacy systems based on large passenger or transport aircraft, IAI has pioneered the use of high-performance business jets for special mission platforms. This has been enabled by the miniaturisation of sensors, the development of unique algorithms and the application of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.
IAI rapidly deployed the Oron aircraft during the war, completing its integration into the Israel Air Force’s Nachshon Squadron. Based on the Gulfstream G550 platform, Oron serves the Air Force, Navy and the IDF Intelligence Directorate as the world’s first Wide-Area Persistent Surveillance aircraft in its category.
Boaz Levy, IAI’s President and CEO, stated: “We are honored to receive the Israel Defense Prize, this time for IAI’s groundbreaking special mission aircraft. At the onset of the ‘Iron Swords’ war, our employees worked tirelessly to deploy the Oron, an aircraft that represents a significant addition to the Nachshon Squadron. These advanced aircraft are the result of decades of innovation in IAI and serve as another testament to the power-multiplier that our technologies enable as a strategic asset for defense forces. IAI invests heavily in the research and development of advanced technologies for Israel’s defense establishment, ensuring superiority against current and future threats.”
The Shavit, Eitam and Oron represent three of IAI’s four lines of Special Mission Aircraft. These include Airborne Early Warning and Control, Intelligence Surveillance Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance, and Signals Intelligence systems, all of which integrate cutting-edge radar, communications and intelligence technologies.
