Ships of the German Navy, including the "Baden-Wuerttemberg" frigate (in foreground), sail at twilight during the Andoya "Missile Firing Exercise 2025“ military maneuvers in the North Sea near Harstad, Norway, on Oct. 13, 2025. Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Germany successfully launched an Israeli-made ballistic missile overnight from a ship in the North Atlantic in what a senior military official described as a new chapter in terms of deterrence and defense readiness at sea.
“We have made naval history,” Vice Admiral Jan Christian Kaack, inspector of the German Navy, said in a Sept. 2 WhatsApp post.
The system was successfully deployed from its units “and its potential range exceeds anything we have known before,” he said.
“For the protection of Germany and our allies, this test represents a new chapter in terms of deterrence and defense readiness at sea.”
Officials said it was a LORA missile built by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), which has a range of up to 310 miles.
Germany does not currently have its own ballistic missiles, which fly at much higher speeds than the cruise missiles now in its arsenal.
European NATO allies have been boosting their defense readiness since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, fearing an expansion of the conflict on the continent.
The inspector-general of the German Armed Forces, Gen. Carsten Breuer, confirmed in a separate WhatsApp post that they had launched the missile from an F-125 frigate in the North Atlantic.
“This marks a new chapter for the Navy and a clear demonstration of our deterrence capability,” Breuer said, adding that it showed how the German armed forces could adapt quickly to new capabilities.
IAI’s chairman, Boaz Levy, said in a statement that the LORA missile struck its target “with exceptional precision.”
“This trial demonstrates Israel’s technological strength and the unique cooperation between Israel and Germany,” further strengthening Germany’s deterrence and defense capabilities, Levy said.
European Missile Development
Berlin is currently involved in a number of collaborations to develop long-range missiles.
Earlier this year, German and British officials met to discuss progress on jointly developing Deep Precision Strike missiles, which would be capable of traveling more than 1,200 miles.
A March 16 statement from the British government said the weapons are expected to enter service in the 2030s. The program will focus initially on ground-launched capabilities, but will also explore air and naval capabilities.
Germany is also working on an upgraded version of its Taurus cruise missile, with production scheduled to start in 2029.
The German military has around 600 Taurus missiles, which have a range of more than 310 miles. These can be launched from fighter jets, including the Tornado, F-15, and F-18.
The deep-strike missile is built by European defense company MBDA. It is designed to destroy targets behind enemy lines such as ammunition and fuel dumps, airfields, bridges, and command bunkers.
MBDA says the Taurus is deployed by German Air Force Tornadoes, as well as being used by the Spanish Air Force’s EF-18 and the South Korean Air Force’s F-15K.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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