Israel's Elbit Systems and German defense firm Diehl Defence have announced a partnership to pitch the SkyStriker loitering munition — a category of weapon often called a "kamikaze drone" — to the German military.
According to Breaking Defense, Elbit said the proposed deal would include local manufacturing and assembly of the system within Germany, carried out jointly with Diehl. The Israeli company framed the arrangement as supporting "the development of sovereign capabilities and strengthening the German defense industry."
The SkyStriker is a fixed-wing, electrically powered drone designed to loiter over a battlefield and then dive into a target. It falls into a class of weapons that have seen surging demand since Russia's invasion of Ukraine demonstrated their battlefield effectiveness.
For Germany, the partnership structure is notable: rather than simply buying a foreign weapons system, Berlin would be acquiring one assembled domestically, giving German industry a foothold in a fast-growing segment of the defense market. This approach aligns with Germany's broader push — accelerated since 2022 — to rebuild and modernize its defense industrial base after decades of underinvestment.
For Elbit, partnering with an established German firm like Diehl helps navigate both procurement politics and potential sensitivities around Israeli defense exports to European governments.
If the bid succeeds, it would mark a significant step in integrating loitering munitions into the German armed forces and cement a transatlantic industrial link in one of defense technology's most contested new categories.