Diehl Defence and Greece’s Hellenic Defence Systems have renewed their long-standing partnership on the IRIS-T missile program through a new memorandum of understanding signed in Athens. The cooperation extends more than two decades of industrial collaboration linked to Greece’s participation in the multinational IRIS-T consortium. Hellenic Defence Systems continues to manufacture key assemblies supporting the IRIS-T missile family, which has evolved from a short-range air-to-air missile into a broader integrated air defense portfolio including the SLS, SLM, and future SLX variants. Demand for IRIS-T systems has risen sharply following Europe’s rearmament efforts and operational deployment in Ukraine. Diehl has expanded partnerships across Europe, including strategic cooperation with Spain’s Indra Group and integration discussions with Lockheed Martin involving Aegis-based air and missile defense architectures. The company also plans to significantly increase annual production capacity for IRIS-T systems over the coming years.
