Greece's Intracom Defense acquired in strategic move by Israel Aerospace Industries

Israel Aerospace Industries signed a deal Tuesday acquiring Greece's Intracom Defense (IDE), a leader in defense technology in the country. IDE, which has a specialization in producing missile launchers, hybrid generation and land and sea tactical communications, is active in Greece and in other NATO countries.

Israel joins many European nations, along with the United States, in its collaborative effort with IDE. The Greek entity will be integrated into Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) business dealings in Greek and other European-based affairs while simultaneously providing solutions for other neighboring nations. 

IAI is a global leader in both defensive and offensive systems as well as in space and aviation. They are crucial to meeting global military engineering needs.

IAI conducts several collaborative activities in Europe such as proven systems for defensive and offensive purposes across space, air, land, and sea usage. Now that they have acquired IDE, the Israel-based company will be able to benefit from production and maintenance throughout Europe and expand their product portfolio. This includes but is not limited to advanced air defense systems.

Boaz Levy, CEO of Israel Aerospace Industries said,  “The acquisition of INTRACOM DEFENSE strength IAI's business capabilities in Greece, and in Europe as a whole. The acquisition of IDE will strengthen and widen activities in Greece, and among NATO countries, and help in promoting wide range of solutions that the company can provide."

Additionally, Socratis Kokkalis, chairman of Intracom Holdings, said that "this deal today reflects the acknowledgment in the excellent capabilities of a special Greek industry – IDE as an internationally recognized company. IDE success is an outcome of 40 years of investment of both capital and human efforts with perseverance and against all odds. We are proud today to take part enhancing the Greek defense industries and overall relations between Greece and Israel."

Developments for IAI at home and abroad

Israel Aerospace Industries on Thursday revealed a first-ever and potentially game-changing Israeli-made unmanned mini-submarine. It is expected to expand the IDF’s intelligence-gathering capabilities and significantly reduce maintenance and training costs.

The 12-meter-long “BlueWhale” mini-submarine is intended for covert intelligence-gathering operations. It can detect submarines and gather acoustic intelligence. It could be the start of a future in which the Israel Navy shifts to more unmanned vehicles that require fewer sailors.

In addition, the vehicle’s small size, which is possible because it does not need room for human operators, makes it much harder for enemy forces to detect than many current options in the navy.