Navantia has signed an agreement with the Spanish Army to carry out maintenance work on key components of the SKYDOR very short-range air defense system. The contract covers the system’s Fire Direction Centers (FDCs) and Sensor Units (US), both originally manufactured by Navantia in partnership with Rheinmetall.
The agreement includes corrective maintenance of the FDCs and sensor units, as well as the supply of spare parts by Rheinmetall Air Defence. The goal is to extend the operational life of the SKYDOR system until 2030, by which time the Spanish Army is expected to bring a new SHORAD/VSHORAD solution into service.
Developed between 2000 and 2007, SKYDOR consists of a sensor unit, a fire direction center, and two twin-barrel 35/90 mm anti-aircraft guns. The FDC was developed jointly by Navantia (then IZAR) and Rheinmetall (then Oerlikon), while the guns were produced by SAPA under license.
As part of broader efforts to strengthen domestic cooperation in air defense, Navantia signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the FEINDEF defense exhibition with SAPA, Rheinmetall, and Expal Systems. The agreement outlines plans to deepen industrial collaboration across future projects in the sector.
Under the current maintenance program, the Spanish Army expects to recover nearly all of the fire control and sensor components of its SKYDOR inventory.