Rheinmetall was awarded a contract from the Czech Republic military worth over $800,000 for tens of thousands of handheld Mithras illumination rockets, the company said Oct. 6.
The Mithras illumination rocket is used for signaling and battlefield illumination with designed ranges of 300, 600, and 1,000 meters. The rocket can carry several payload types including starburst flares, colored smoke, instant smoke/obscurant for signaling, or parachute cartridges for visible or infrared illumination, Rheinmetall said.
“In strategic terms, it is important because the Czech Republic is one of a growing number of NATO nations to choose this innovative illumination rocket,” the company said in a statement.
The Mithras is a self-contained system fired without a launch device like a flare pistol, Rheinmetall said. The illumination rocket has a triply secured, rotatable arming mechanism, which assures safe handling in accordance with STANAG 4497. Other features include low recoil, negligible smoke signature, and spin and surface stabilization.
The illumination rockets are mostly built at the company’s Silberhütte plant in Saxony-Anhalt. Rheinmetall highlighted the Mithras has been fully qualified by the British and French procurement authorities and meet German qualification standards.
The Mithras is currently used by the armed force of the United Kingdom, France, and Scandinavia, the company said. It also noted follow-up orders from the Czech armed forces are likely.
The order is set to last through November 2015.