The Spanish government has announced a deal to acquire additional National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) from Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace in a deal worth around EUR 410 million ($444 million).
The Spanish Armaments Directorate (Dirección General de Armamento y Material – DGAM) submitted a notification of award for the NASAMS modernization programme. This programme aims to significantly enhance Spain’s existing NASAMS capability and will further bolster the cooperation between Spain and Norway. The official contract is expected to be signed in May 2024.
Spain was the initial international user of NASAMS, and the country has been operating it for over two decades. Currently, Spanish NASAMS units are deployed in the Baltics as a part of NATO’s Air Shielding Mission. At present, the NASAMS user group consists of 13 NATO and partner nations.
A NASAMS unit consists of multiple modules, including a command post called FDC, an active 3D radar known as Raytheon AN/MPQ-64F1 Sentinel, a passive electro-optical and infrared sensor, and a set of missile canister launchers equipped with AMRAAM missiles.
In order to optimize the system’s performance, multiple NASAMS fire units are connected together through a specially designed “hard-realtime” communication network. This network ensures minimal latency over long distances, taking advantage of the unique capabilities of the AMRAAM missile.
NASAMS is a highly flexible and mobile system designed to protect air bases, seaports, population centres, ground forces, and other high-value assets. It is interoperable with longer-range systems like Patriot and can be organized into mission-oriented task forces. This modular design allows operators to tailor the system to the task at hand, maximizing its efficiency and effectiveness.
