Norway tested its new NOMADS air defense system in June 2024. The highly mobile, amphibious system, based on armored vehicles, will be able to rapidly defend against attacks like those launched against Ukraine by Russia. NORWEGIAN DEFENSE MATERIEL AGENCY (VIA BARENTS OBSERVER)
THE WATCH STAFF
The Norwegian Army tested its new highly mobile, amphibious National Manouvre Air Defence System (NOMADS) in June 2024 at Andøya, an island air base in the country’s far north. The base is also slated to be used for maritime surveillance military drones and U.S. troops and materiel after a recently signed defense agreement. The NOMADS system is Norwegian made by Kongsberg, which says it “tailor-made” the system for the Norwegian Armed Forces.
NOMADS is based on technology that has been highly successful against the Russian forces since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Each unit contains a radar, operational room and a missile launcher, all mounted on an armored combat vehicle, according to the Barents Observers, a Norwegian newspaper. “The Army needs modern air defence in order to be able to combat a high-tech opponent,” said Jarle Nergård, a Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency spokesperson.
Able to defend against small, short-range targets like drones and cruise missiles, NOMADS can provide protection against threats from Russia in Ukraine, said Kjetil Reiten Myhra, Kongsberg’s executive vice president for defence systems, according to the Observer. The technology will also be able to provide cover for front-line infantry units facing aerial threats. “Its configuration is designed for rapid movement over rough terrain and with unprecedented into-action-time,” he said. Following Norway’s donation of IRIS-T missiles to Ukraine, Norway intends to apply AIM-9X missiles for the new air defense system, the newspaper reported.
The Norwegian Defense Ministry said the new system would be rapidly deployed. Six NOMAD systems will be delivered to the Armed Forces, and the new air defense system is scheduled to be fully operational by 2028. “We have conducted successful live firing with the system, where we have tested the entire chain: From the time the sensors pick up the target until the missile is launched,” stated project manager Geir Sandberg of the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency in a defense ministry news release. The testing of the NOMADS comes as Norway is in the process of making a major upgrade of its air defense capabilities. The country recently adopted long-term defense plan calls for a doubling of surface-to-air missile system power, the newspaper reported.
That plan, approved by the Norwegian Parliament in April 2024, was further boosted the following month to meet NATO’s goal of member states spending 2% of GDP on defense before the NATO summit in July. Prime Minister Jonas Støre explained the mid-year budget spike as necessary because of increased tensions in the region. “We must increase the operational capability of the Armed Forces,” Støre said at a news conference announcing an additional $630 million to the defense budget over the next 12 years — only a month after the country approved a historic bump in military spending.
The increase gives additional heft to an already substantial bump in money flowing to the Armed Forces. The funds will increase the Army from one to three brigades and expand the Home Guard to 45,000 Soldiers. The plan also envisions new frigates, submarines and other vessels and Norway’s first long-range air defense system, according to the government.