Rafael’s SPIKE SR Shoulder-Launched Guided Missile Advances Toward U.S. Qualification for Dismounted Forces.

Rafael is moving its lightweight SPIKE SR precision missile into formal U.S. qualification, with Rafael Systems Global Sustainment announcing the new Aviation & Missile Technology Consortium agreement on September 22, 2026. The effort could give U.S. dismounted forces a roughly 10-kilogram, fire-and-forget weapon able to strike armored and other point targets at ranges up to 2 kilometers without exposing operators to prolonged guidance.

SPIKE SR combines a rapid start-up, electro-optical guidance and a tandem HEAT warhead in a shoulder-launched package designed for stationary and moving targets. Its fire-and-forget operation allows infantry teams to engage and quickly relocate, strengthening organic precision firepower and survivability for light forces in contested close-combat environments.

Related Topic: U.S. Apache Strike With Israeli SPIKE NLOS Missile Signals New Indo-Pacific Maritime Warfare Architecture

Rafael’s SPIKE SR is entering U.S. qualification, moving the 2-kilometer, fire-and-forget precision missile closer to potential use by American dismounted forces (Picture Source: Rafael)

On September 22, 2026, Rafael Systems Global Sustainment (RSGS) announced that it had been awarded an agreement through the Aviation & Missile Technology Consortium (AMTC) to support U.S. qualification of the SPIKE SR shoulder-launched electro-optically guided missile. The effort moves the compact precision weapon into a new phase of U.S.-specific adaptation, integration and testing, building on several years of evaluation and cooperation involving Rafael technology and the U.S. Army. Designed to place guided precision fire directly in the hands of dismounted troops, SPIKE SR combines a 2-kilometer engagement range with a missile-in-canister weight of approximately 10 kilograms.

The agreement is significant because it represents a qualification and development step rather than a disclosed U.S. procurement decision. RSGS and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems will conduct adaptation, integration and testing of capabilities tailored to U.S. requirements, while the announcement does not identify a production quantity, contract value, deployment schedule or commitment to field SPIKE SR operationally. AMTC itself is structured to support Army aviation and guided-missile research, development and prototyping through an Other Transaction Agreement framework, providing a mechanism for technologies to be matured and evaluated against military requirements outside a conventional production contract. In practical terms, the latest award places SPIKE SR on a more formal U.S. technology maturation and qualification pathway, but any subsequent acquisition decision would represent a separate step.

At the center of the effort is a missile designed around portability and rapid engagement. Rafael lists SPIKE SR with a range of 50 to 2,000 meters, a missile-in-canister weight of 10 kilograms, fire-and-forget operation, a tandem high-explosive anti-tank warhead and a power-up-to-ready time of under six seconds. RSGS says the weapon employs a third-generation electro-optical seeker with dual day/night capability incorporating uncooled infrared, a high-resolution CCD channel and an optimized tracker, enabling lock-on against stationary and moving targets. The fire-and-forget architecture means the operator does not need to continuously guide the missile after launch, while Rafael describes the short startup cycle as allowing troops to engage targets that may remain exposed only briefly. Claims concerning hit probability and effectiveness against heavily armored targets remain manufacturer-stated performance characteristics rather than independently established results from the newly announced U.S. qualification campaign.

SPIKE SR's operational relevance lies not simply in its anti-armor role, but in the relationship between precision, weight and the tactical echelon at which the capability can be carried. RSGS specifically positions the weapon for infantry platoon- and section-level employment, potentially allowing small dismounted formations to retain a guided direct-fire capability without relying on a substantially heavier launcher architecture. Its approximately 10-kilogram packaged weight and fire-and-forget guidance are particularly relevant to troops whose combat load, exposure time and ability to relocate after firing directly affect tactical mobility. If the system successfully meets U.S. qualification requirements, its value would be in placing a comparatively compact precision effector closer to the maneuver element, shortening the chain between target detection and engagement while allowing the firing soldier to displace after launch. That combination reflects a broader requirement facing modern infantry forces: increasing organic precision lethality without imposing the weight and operational burden associated with larger missile systems.

The 2026 agreement is also the latest point in a longer U.S. trajectory for SPIKE SR. Rafael demonstrated the missile during the U.S. Army's Expeditionary Warrior Experiment in 2021, marking what the company described as the weapon's first live firing on U.S. soil; according to Rafael, missiles engaged both stationary and moving targets during the event. In March 2025, Rafael, through RSGS, announced a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center covering evaluation and further development of several tactical SPIKE-family systems, including SPIKE SR, SPIKE LR2, SPIKE ER2 and the Firefly loitering munition. Viewed together, the sequence shows a progression from demonstration in 2021, to broader cooperative evaluation in 2025, and now to a dedicated SPIKE SR qualification and development effort in 2026. RSGS said in its latest announcement that the wider SPIKE missile family is in use by 46 countries, including 22 NATO members, although that international footprint does not by itself indicate future U.S. procurement.

The AMTC agreement consequently places SPIKE SR closer to the point at which its suitability for specific U.S. requirements can be assessed through adaptation, integration and qualification testing, while stopping short of confirming an acquisition program. The next indicators will be the scope and results of that qualification effort, the nature of any U.S.-specific modifications, the degree of American industrial participation and whether successful testing ultimately leads to a military procurement requirement. For Rafael and RSGS, the program provides an opportunity to translate an internationally fielded missile design into a configuration aligned with the U.S. defense ecosystem; for U.S. forces, it provides a pathway to evaluate whether a 2-kilometer, fire-and-forget precision weapon in a roughly 10-kilogram package can add useful organic lethality at the dismounted level. Until further contracting or service decisions are announced, SPIKE SR should be regarded as an advancing U.S. qualification effort, not as a weapon already selected for American operational service.

Explore More Defense News

• Land Defense News
• Naval Defense News
• Defense Aerospace News

Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group

Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.