Rafael integrating SPICE 1000 stand-off munition on Israeli F-35s

An Israeli F-35I Adir assigned to 140 Squadron, Nevatim Air Base, takes off for a mission during Red Flag-Nellis 23-2 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, March, 22, 2023. (U.S. Air Force photo by William R. Lewis)

JERUSALEM — Israeli firm Rafael Advanced Defense Systems announced today that for the first time it is “integrating its SPICE 1000 air-to-surface munition on the F-35 fighter aircraft,” a move it sees as a “significant step” in allowing other F-35 users to use the munition.

SPICE stands for Smart, Precise Impact and Cost-Effective and refers to a line of munitions meant to provide a stand-off strike capability of more than 75 miles (120km). The group of weapons, marketed as SPICE 2000, 1000 and 250 — denoting the munitions’ weight in pounds — have been around for years as part of Rafael’s line of systems. Spice 1000 has been operational with the Israel Air Force since 2017.

Israel is one of the 20 countries that have acquired the F-35 and was the first to use it in combat in 2018. Israel recently decided to acquire another 25 of the fifth-generation aircraft, for a total of 75. The integration with the F-35, “being carried out as a joint project” between Rafael and F-35-maker Lockheed Martin over the next several months in the US, is expected to enable the Spice munition to be used with Israeli F-35i aircraft. “At a later stage, F-35 operators worldwide will be able to field SPICE 1000,” Rafael said.

A Pentagon report [ PDF ] from April, that was cleared for publication in August, noted the SPICE integration on F-35s, saying it “continues to progress with a strategy to accelerate the implementation via a SPICE Lite process.” It did not say to what SPICE Lite referred.

Rafael said today that SPICE is “equipped with an electro-optical seeker. The munition homes in on its target using advanced scene-matching algorithms and is optimized for the challenges of the modern battlefield.”

Rafael also has worked with Lockheed Martin on SPICE in the past. In 2019 the company signed a teaming agreement to jointly develop, market and manufacture SPICE guidance kits for US sales.

At the time Yuval Miller, executive vice president and general manager of Rafael’s Air & C4ISR Division said, “finalizing this exclusive agreement sets the scene for our two companies to provide unmatched mid-range guided air-to-surface weapon systems to enhance mission flexibility and success.”

In 2021 the two companies “ expanded ” the teaming agreement so they could jointly develop SPICE 250 “for sale in the United States and in Poland.”

2023年3月22日，在内华达州内利斯空军基地举行的“红旗-内利斯23-2”军演期间，隶属于内瓦蒂姆空军基地第140中队的以色列空军F-35I“阿迪尔”战斗机起飞执行任务。（美国空军照片，摄影：威廉·R·刘易斯）

耶路撒冷——以色列拉斐尔先进防御系统公司今天宣布，该公司首次“将SPICE 1000空对地弹药集成到F-35战斗机上”，该公司认为此举是允许其他F-35用户使用该弹药的“重要一步”。

SPICE 代表“智能、精准打击和成本效益”，指的是一系列旨在提供超过 75 英里（120 公里）远程打击能力的弹药。这组武器以 SPICE 2000、1000 和 250 的名称销售——分别代表弹药的磅数——作为拉斐尔公司产品线的一部分，已存在多年。SPICE 1000 自 2017 年起在以色列空军服役。

以色列是已采购F-35战机的20个国家之一，也是2018年首个将其投入实战的国家。以色列近期决定再采购25架第五代战机，使其总数达到75架。未来几个月，拉斐尔公司和F-35制造商洛克希德·马丁公司将在美国开展联合项目，对F-35战机进行SPICE弹药的整合，预计整合完成后，以色列的F-35i战机即可使用SPICE弹药。拉斐尔公司表示：“在后续阶段，全球F-35用户都将能够部署SPICE 1000弹药。”

五角大楼一份四月份发布的报告[PDF]（该报告于八月份获准发布）指出，F-35战机上的SPICE系统集成工作“正通过SPICE Lite流程加速实施，并持续推进”。但报告并未说明SPICE Lite具体指的是什么。

拉斐尔公司今天表示，SPICE弹药“配备了光电导引头。该弹药利用先进的场景匹配算法锁定目标，并针对现代战场的挑战进行了优化。”

拉斐尔公司过去也曾与洛克希德·马丁公司在SPICE项目上合作。2019年，两家公司签署了一项合作协议，共同开发、销售和生产面向美国市场的SPICE制导组件。

当时，拉斐尔公司空中与C4ISR部门执行副总裁兼总经理尤瓦尔·米勒表示：“这项独家协议的最终敲定，为我们两家公司提供无与伦比的中程制导空对地武器系统奠定了基础，从而增强了任务的灵活性和成功率。”

2021 年，两家公司“扩大”了合作协议，以便共同开发 SPICE 250，“在美国和波兰销售”。