German Air Force receives first IRIS-T SLM air defense missile system in national configuration.

The German Air Force's Air Defence Missile Group 61 received the first IRIS-T SLM fire unit in German national configuration, which includes one TRML-4D radar, one IBMS-FC command post, and three launchers with 24 ready-to-fire missiles.

On February 13, 2026, the German Air Force announced that the Air Defence Missile Group 61 in Todendorf received the first IRIS-T SLM fire unit in German national configuration. The system includes one TRML-4D radar, one IBMS-FC command post, and three launchers with 24 ready-to-fire missiles. The handover marks the start of operational integration within Germany’s layered air defence structure as part of the Bundeswehr’s expanded ground-based air defence modernization program.
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Germany’s IRIS-T SLM procurement path includes a Bundestag Budget Committee approval on June 14, 2023, of roughly €950 million to buy six IRIS-T SLM fire units, plus 216 missiles, with an option for two additional fire units. (Picture source: Team Luftwaffe)

The German Air Force, via the Team Luftwaffe, confirmed that the Air Defence Missile Group 61 (Flugabwehrraketengruppe 61) in Todendorf received the first IRIS-T SLM fire unit in the German configuration, formally introducing the medium-range air defense system into operational service. The standard German IRIS-T SLM fire unit consists of one Hensoldt TRML-4D radar, one IBMS-FC command post, and three launcher vehicles, each carrying eight vertically launched missiles for a total of 24 ready-to-fire interceptors, supported by reload and maintenance vehicles. The IRIS-T SLM provides 360-degree coverage with an engagement range of up to 40 km and an altitude of up to 20 km, forming the medium-range layer within Germany’s ground-based air defence structure. The handover initiates unit-level integration, personnel training, and progression toward full operational readiness within the German Air Force chain of command.

The Flugabwehrraketengruppe 61 is subordinated to the Flugabwehrraketengeschwader 1 (Air Defence Missile Wing 1) under the Luftwaffentruppenkommando (Air Force Forces Command) and is stationed in Todendorf, with a reported personnel strength of about 500 soldiers. Its current mission centers on highly mobile short-range protection of land forces using the Wiesel 2 Ozelot (leichte Flugabwehrsystem leFlaSys), a SHORAD system designed to counter low-flying aircraft, and the unit fields two operational leFlaSys platoons. Until October 2023, it also operated the MANTIS close-in protection system for very-short-range defence. The introduction of five IRIS-T SLM fire units expands the unit’s capability into the medium-range band, with full conversion planned by mid-2027 following the first commissioning milestone reached in September 2024. The unit has been commanded by Oberstleutnant Björn Klarl since October 2024, born April 4, 1981, in Ulm.

Germany’s procurement framework for IRIS-T SLM started with a June 14, 2023, approval of about €950 million for six fire units and 216 missiles, with an option for two additional units, financed through the Bundeswehr special fund. Serial deliveries are scheduled from late 2025 through 2027, and the first fire unit was accepted in early August 2024 before formal commissioning on September 4, 2024. A fire unit in German service comprises the radar, command post, and launchers, and is integrated into national air defence networks and the European Sky Shield Initiative (ESSI) alongside other systems such as Patriot and Arrow 3. In November 2025, a broader €3.85 billion defence package included roughly €1 billion allocated to expand IRIS-T SLM stocks, additional launch elements, and improved sensor and command integration. Planning discussions reference potential expansion toward several dozen medium-range systems and up to 100 IRIS-T SLS short-range systems to rebuild layered air defence capacity.

Combat employment in Ukraine has influenced production and procurement scaling, with the first IRIS-T SLM system transferred on October 11, 2022, followed by additional deliveries in April 2023, October 2023, May 2024, and December 2024. Ukraine has also received IRIS-T SLS units, and German commitments include framework agreements that allow delivery of further fire units and up to 500 missiles depending on operational demand. Ukrainian authorities have cited interception performance near 90 percent and recorded engagements involving multiple cruise missiles intercepted within seconds, as well as confirmed use against short-range ballistic missiles. By September 2024, German officials referenced hundreds of intercepted cruise missiles, drones, and rockets attributed to IRIS-T SLM and SLS systems in Ukrainian service. Industrial expansion to meet international demand includes an investment of about €1.5 billion to increase missile production capacity, with a new missile manufacturing facility opened in Saarland in January 2026.

Development of the IRIS-T SLM began in 2007 under Diehl Defence leadership in cooperation with Norway, Sweden, Greece, and Italy, responding to a requirement for a medium-range complement to the MEADS program. Initial unguided flight testing occurred in October 2009 at the Overberg Test Range in South Africa, followed by prototype firing campaigns from May 2012 and a successful interception of a target drone in December 2012. Developer trials concluded in 2015, Bundeswehr testing commenced in 2017, and the system reached operational readiness status in 2022. In 2023, a training center was established at Todendorf to support German and foreign operators. The system competes internationally with Sky Sabre and MICA VL and is also being evaluated for integration into the Mk 41 vertical launching system and the Aegis combat system, with a naval demonstrator tested aboard the frigate Baden-Württemberg in 2025.

The IRIS-T SLM architecture is modular and containerized, with all major components mounted on standardized 20-foot ISO frames, allowing transport by truck, rail, sea, or air, including compatibility with C-130 and A400M aircraft. The Tactical Operations Center functions as the engagement and command node, linking to higher echelons through radio or fiber-optic connections and providing real-time and non-real-time interfaces for integration into broader air defence networks. Launchers can be deployed up to 20 km from the command post and become fully operational within about ten minutes after emplacement, while reload takes roughly 15 minutes. The system supports alternative sensor integration, including CEAFAR, Thales Ground Master 200 MM/C, Saab Giraffe 4A, and TwInvis passive radar, although the German configuration uses the TRML-4D. The open architecture allows connection to national and NATO command and control frameworks.

The Hensoldt TRML-4D radar operates in the G-band with an active electronically scanned array using gallium nitride amplifiers and provides 360-degree azimuth coverage. It has an instrumented range of 250 km and can operate up to 30 km altitude, detecting targets with radar cross sections down to 0.01 m² and tracking up to 1,500 targets simultaneously in 3D mode. Detection performance includes approximately 120 km for a fighter-sized aircraft and around 60 km for a supersonic missile, and the radar incorporates identification friend-or-foe capability. The IRIS-T SLM missile, derived from the IRIS-T air-to-air missile, features an enlarged 152 mm diameter solid-fuel rocket motor supplied by Nammo, thrust vector control, GPS-aided inertial navigation, and a two-way data link. The missile weighs between 110 and 130 kg, depending on configuration, reaches speeds of about 1,000 to 1,020 m/s or Mach 3, carries an 11.4 kg fragmentation warhead with impact and active radar proximity fuzing, and engages targets through vertical launch, midcourse updates, and terminal imaging infrared homing within a 40 km range and 20 km ceiling.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.