Elbit Systems wins $50m contract with Portugese Air Force

After winning a competitive tender this week to supply advanced communications systems to the Swiss military, Elbit Systems Ltd. reported today that it had been awarded a contract valued at approximately $50 million from the Portuguese Ministry of Defense to supply the Portuguese Air Force with a complete Electronic Warfare (EW) suite and Customer Logistics Support for the new KC-390 multi-mission aircraft. The contract will be performed over a five-year period.

Under the contract, Elbit Systems will supply the Portuguese Air Force's KC-390 aircraft with a complete EW suite comprising Radar and Laser Warning Systems, IR Missile Warning System, Countermeasures Dispensing System, a Directional IR Countermeasures (DIRCM) system and Active ECM (AECM) POD system.

Edgar Maimon, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Elbit Systems EW and SIGINT - Elisra, said, "The Portuguese Air Force is a long-standing strategic partner of Elbit Systems and we are proud of this contract award to provide enhanced survivability for their new fleet of KC-390 aircraft."

Earlier this week, it was reported that after a long competitive process that took place in Switzerland, Elbit beat German electronics group Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co KG in the final stage of a tender for the supply of a tactical Software Defined Radio (SDR) system to the Swiss armed forces. The tender process began in 2016, and no fewer than fifteen companies from all over the world participated in it. The contract will be worth $250-300 million. The deal is conditional on approval by the Swiss Parliament.

Defense market sources said this week that the Swiss contract could lead to further orders of this kind in the future.