On September 27, 2021, Czech Defense Minister Lubomir Metnar officially announced the conclusion of an agreement with the Government of Israel on the acquisition of four batteries of SPYDER SR short- and medium-range anti-aircraft missile systems manufactured by the Israeli company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems for the Czech armed forces.
The combat vehicle of the Israeli anti-aircraft missile system Rafael SPYDER SR on the Tatra T815 (6x6) (c) Rafael automobile chassis
The contract value is CZK 13.69 billion ($627 million) with VAT. Czech industry will receive a 30% share of costs in the supply and maintenance of complexes, whose machines, in particular, will be made on Tatra automobile chassis. It is expected that within 20 years the cost of being in service and servicing these air defense systems will amount to another 23 billion crowns, of which 7.5 billion crowns will be paid to the Israeli side.
The decision to choose the Rafael SPYDER SR air defense system was made by the Czech Ministry of Defense in September 2020 following a tender, and then pre-contract negotiations took a year. As a result, four SPYDER SAM batteries have now been ordered (four launchers each, with Python 5 and Derby missiles) to replace the old Soviet medium-range 2K12M2 "cUbe-M2" SAMs in the Czech Armed forces. SPYDER SR air defense systems will be delivered to the Czech Air Force from 2023 to 2026. Currently, the Czech Air Force has four 2K12M2 "cUbe-M2" SAM batteries, which are part of the 251st anti-aircraft missile group of the 25th "Tobruk" anti-aircraft missile Regiment (251. protiletadlový raketový oddíl, 25. protiletadlový raketový pluk "Tobruký") with a deployment in Strakonice.
Earlier in December 2019, the Czech Republic signed an agreement with the Israeli side on the purchase for the Czech Air Force of eight EL/M-2084 MMR ground-based mobile air target detection radars manufactured by the Israeli company IAI Elta in the amount of $ 125 million, with delivery in 2021-2023. It should be noted that each air defense system battery in the SPYDER MR variant also includes one EL/M-2084 MMR detection and targeting radar, but, as can be understood from the photos given in the press release of the Czech Ministry of Defense, the Czech side chose a combination of the SPYDER SR air defense system with the EL/M-2084 MMR battery radar.
The Czech Republic became the seventh known customer of the SPYDER series after Georgia, Singapore, India, Ethiopia, Vietnam and the Philippines.