IAI reports record $6.1 billion in sales as global demand for weapons surges
Defense giant's net profit jumps 55% as war in Israel and global rearmament drive new orders.
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) recorded an all-time sales record in 2024, with revenue rising 14% compared to the previous year, reaching $6.1 billion. The state-owned defense company’s net profit surged 55% to $493 million.
IAI’s sales were driven by high demand for weapons systems from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) amid the ongoing war, as well as increased orders from international markets following global military rearmament in response to lessons learned from the Russia-Ukraine war.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, IAI’s sales rose 18% year-over-year to $1.7 billion. However, net profit for the quarter declined by 2.5% to $77 million compared to the same period in 2023.
A wave of significant orders in 2024 boosted IAI’s order backlog to $25 billion. Among the new contracts: an order worth several billion shekels from Israel’s Ministry of Defense to expand the Air Force’s air defense system with Arrow 3 anti-missile interceptors. The exact value of the order remains classified.
Additionally, IAI secured a nearly $2 billion deal to supply a weapons system to an undisclosed foreign customer. Neither the details of the system nor the identity of the buyer were revealed.
IAI’s record-breaking financial results for 2024 include revenue from the largest arms deal in Israel’s history—the supply of Arrow 3 systems to the German military, a deal valued at approximately NIS 14 billion. Germany is the first country to receive IAI’s advanced interceptor system, which was used over the past year to defend Israel against missile attacks from Iran and the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Boaz Levy, CEO of IAI, called the 2024 results the best in the company’s history. “The data reflects the company’s intensive activity during a year of continuous, unprecedented combat and significant global challenges,” he said.
Boardroom drama at IAI
Alongside the release of its financial reports, a power struggle unfolded at IAI’s leadership. The board of directors elected Gabi Seroussi, Defense Minister Israel Katz’s preferred candidate, as chairman of the company.
Earlier in the meeting, former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan announced he was freezing his candidacy for the position for three months. Erdan stated that he intended to reapply when Seroussi’s term as a director expires in July.
In a speech to the board, Erdan accused Katz of severing all ties with him, despite their previous collaboration. He also claimed that since taking office, Katz had refused to meet with him. During the meeting, Erdan criticized the selection process for the IAI chairmanship, calling it “ugly and motivated by extraneous considerations.”
